Give Me Darkness, Give Me Light
by AnkhSu
Summary: Okay, this is my first story for this section so please be gentle! This takes place about a year after the movie. Clarice and a new agent are trying to track down a new killer, with some unexpected surprises. ~Epilogue added and the story's now complete!~
1. Dead Bodies Everywhere

(A/N: Okay, this is my first attempt at a story in this section, so please be gentle! Anyways, this is just a story that has been floating around in my head for a while and only managed to get down on paper during math and French class. I'm not sure if I'm liking it or hating it so far, so you can be the judge. Oh and sorry if my memory's a little rusty where the characters and other details are concerned, I haven't seen the movies in the longest time and I have yet to read the books. So yeah, enough of my rambles...)  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own anything in this story, except for the characters that I've made up myself.  
  
Give Me Darkness, Give Me Light..  
  
Chapter 1: Dead Bodies Everywhere  
  
Another night, another death.  
  
Driving down the road, Special Agent Clarice Starling shook her head in disbelief. This had been the fifth night in a row in which another body had been found, each one getting more disturbing than the last. The two things that had really grinded her nerves, however, was that there was no clear evidence on who the killer could possibly be other than a signature in brail that had been carved onto all of the victims so far, identifying the killer only as 'Chimera'. The other reason being, all these late night calls to yet another body was more than taking its toll on Clarice's sleeping cycle. Add to the fact that her sleep was already terribly unstable, she was so tempted to just use up the rest of her sick days just so that she could call into work dead. As stupid a thought as that may seem, to Clarice's dreary exhausted mind at the moment it seemed like pure genius.  
  
Pushing those thoughts aside, she pulled her rental mustang into the parking lot beside an old abandoned warehouse, though at the moment it was buzzing with activity. Police and FBI were running around all over the place, all the while trying their best to fight off the vultures that were the press, and keeping the curious public at bay on the sidewalk. Clarice held back the urge to slam down the gas pedal and run over a few of the increasingly annoying reporters, if for anything, to release at least some of her growing frustrations. Luckily, she was able to keep herself from playing 'Bowling for Reporters' with her car just long enough to park it among the police cars and other various vehicles.  
  
Stepping out of her car and into the cold midnight air, Clarice was quickly greeted by one of the voices that she was not in the mood of hearing. "You're late Starling."  
  
Clarice shot a glare at Clint Pearsall and muttered, "If you had given me better directions other than 'that old warehouse' then I might have avoided having to drive all over this goddamn town checking each old warehouse until I found find the right one!"  
  
Pearsall rolled his eyes but said nothing. Even if he didn't show it, Clarice could tell that he was enjoying her predicament. After her last encounter with Dr. Lecter, the whole Bureau seemed to have taken upon itself to make her life an even more of a living hell than it already was. Nobody would say it to her face, but Clarice could tell that she had lost a lot of trust and respect after that incident, not that she really cared these days.  
  
"This way Agent Starling." Pearsall walked ahead of her, motioning her to follow. She was quick to comply, thinking that the quicker she could get this over with, the quicker she could go back to her crappy hotel room and get some much needed rest.  
  
The inside of the warehouse was no better than outside, cold, dark, and a lingering stench of old forgotten fabrics and foods. The few dim lights revealed police and FBI running to and fro, though the most were situated around one particular spot on the floor. Clarice knew that that spot was where she had to go, nobody needed to tell her.  
  
She picked up her pace and walked ahead of Pearsall, paying no mind to the irritated look that appeared on his face. Clarice wove through the other people, bumping into a few of the clumsier ones on the way. She just wanted to get this over with as soon as possible.  
  
Finally finding her way to the object of interest, Clarice forced herself not to cringe as she bent down for a closer look. She felt a slight brush against her side as another person kneeled down beside her. "Fifth one so far," a female voice with a slight accent wearily growled.  
  
Clarice nodded and turned to face the new person, "And I assume no new evidence either Monroe?" she asked to woman. Special Agent Jadis Monroe shook her head sadly, her forest green eyes fixated on the body in front of them. Clarice had a growing liking to the newer agent, probably because they were so similar. Both were orphans, both having scars that will never heal, and both having a great disliking for Pearsall. And, at the moment, both would have rather been in bed asleep, instead of looking at a blood- spattered body in a rat infested warehouse with the biggest rat of them all, Pearsall, hovering over their shoulders.  
  
Clarice looked back down at the body. An older male, probably in his late sixties, wearing ripped clothes and that telltale brail signature carved neatly on his stomach. His eyes were wide, the obvious terror of the sight of the sewing needles coming for his pupils could be clearly seen, along with the firmly entrenched needles. His fingernails were just hanging on to his fingers by a small flap of skin, the lead of a sharp pencil embedded underneath a couple, along with small shards underneath the others. His lips were gone, ripped none-to-cleanly off with crazy glue and a metal beam, or at least it was presumed. Clarice knew that there was much more, but these were the ones that really stuck out with a single glance. This man had obviously suffered greatly before his death.  
  
"Any idea who this man is?" Clarice asked.  
  
Jadis shook her head. "Not right yet, there has been no missing persons report in this area that matches him, so I'm assuming that he was kidnapped, tortured, and killed within a few hours."  
  
Clarice nodded her agreement. "Must be a thrill killer, as far as I can tell, there's nothing to link any of the victims, they seem completely random. But then again, I just have this feeling.." She trailed off, getting lost in her own thoughts for a few seconds until Pearsall shoved something into her hands. Looking down, she saw that the file was already a fairly large size.  
  
"Anything at all that you two can find on this case," Pearsall told the two women, "find as quickly as you can. I'll have the profiles of the victims delivered to you tomorrow." He stole a glare at Clarice and said, "Don't let me down."  
  
Clarice stood up and returned Pearsall's glare but said nothing in reply. Jadis lingered on the ground for a few more seconds before standing up as well. She gave Pearsall a look of disapproval but decided to keep her fool mouth shut. Instead, she followed Clarice back outside to their cars.  
  
"You feel up to this Monroe?" Clarice asked the young agent as she fished in her jacket pocket for her keys.  
  
Jadis grinned. "Well, I didn't expect my first major case would be tracking down a serial killer in a small town in the middle of nowhere with the famous Special Agent Clarice Starling, but I think I can manage it, hopefully." She said as she pulled her own jacket closer to her body and pushed her long, dark hair away from her face. Without her hair in the way, a person could clearly see a large scar across Jadis' right cheek, right underneath her eye, obviously put there by a knife at a young age.  
  
Clarice let out a small chuckle. "Yeah, well, you quickly learn to expect the unexpected in this business. The downside is that you never seem to get used to some of the stuff that pops up over and over again. Just try not to let it get to you." Clarice let out a sigh, her mind starting to drift again.  
  
"Starling?" Jadis inquired, causing Clarice to snap out of her thoughts. "Are you okay? You seem to be somewhere else."  
  
Clarice looked at her and shook her head. "No, don't worry, I'm fine, just need a good night's sleep that's all."  
  
The other woman nodded her agreement. "Yeah, I know the feeling, unfortunately. Well, see you tomorrow then Starling."  
  
"Yeah, good night Monroe." Clarice responded back to Jadis as they departed for each of their individual cars, both more than content to be going back to their beds.  
  
****************************  
  
The sun was just beginning to peak over the horizon as the first new issues of 'The Tattler' newspaper were being placed on the stands, fresh off the press. At one particular small shop on the waterfront of this small town, a dark silent figure was reading his newly purchased copy of the paper, his attention fixated on the headline article, 'Chimera Killer Strikes Again, Fresh New Details About The Case'.  
  
Hannibal Lecter had been following this case with great interest, mostly due to the fact that there wasn't much else exciting going on in the world these days. His eyes, more or less, just scanned the text before stopping on one particular sentence:  
  
'Sources confirmed that Special Agent Clarice Starling of Hannibal 'the Cannibal' fame and newly acquired Special Agent Jadis Monroe of the FBI are now working together on this case in hopes of identifying this killer before he or she claims more victims.'  
  
Hannibal couldn't help but grin at this new development. He hadn't originally planned to do any visiting while enjoying his stay here, but he was suddenly very tempted to change his plans. Walking out of the shop and into the crisp, clean morning air, he mentally started to make preparations for a little reunion, with a slight indication of a grin still planted on his face.  
  
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(A/N: Okay, so there is the first chapter. I hope that it wasn't as bad as I thought it was. Sorry about any mistakes or whatnot I've might have made along the way, also sorry if this first chapter was a little boring. So yeah, let me know if I should continue this or not! And thanks for reading!)  
  
-SP 


	2. What Lies Beneath

(A/N: Many many many thanks to the people that reviewed!! Your words provided fuel for my fingers!! Okay, here's chapter number two, hope you guys like it!)  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing in this story, except for the characters that I've made up myself.  
  
Give Me Darkness, Give Me Light...  
  
Chapter 2: What Lies Beneath  
  
As Clarice gratefully chugged down the last bit of coffee in her mug, she could already feel herself become a little more alert and awake. Despite this, she knew that she was going to need another cup of some sort of caffeinated drink once she arrived at Jadis' room in a few minutes, considering the fact that she had only gotten roughly about three hours of sleep after returning to the hotel the night before...  
  
While Clarice was in a coma-like sleep facedown on her lumpy hotel bed, the person staying in the room beside her had decided that four-thirty in the morning was the perfect time to watch some cartoons on TV and have a few good rounds of belly-laughs, obviously under the impression that the walls were soundproof.  
  
"What kind of person watches old reruns of 'Ren and Stimpy' at this time of morning?!" Clarice had muttered to no one in particular. To her surprise, however, she had almost immediately received an answer.  
  
'An insane person, Starling, that's who,' the voice that currently occupied her head had replied. Despite her weariness, Clarice couldn't help but chuckle at the word insane, a word that she knew all too well.  
  
Realizing that sleep wasn't going to visit her again that night, at least as long as her neighbor was kept amused, Clarice had suddenly found herself pondering over that word. What is considered insane anyways? She never really thought of herself to be insane, though in the eyes of a number of people, she was seen to be loonier than Loony Tunes. Then again, how does a person know that he or she is insane? How can she know for sure that she wasn't really just imagining this life, that she only thought that she was a special agent for the FBI who has tracked down serial killers and done drug busts and all that other stuff that was expected of her? How does she know for sure that she wasn't really in a big white padded room wearing a strait jacket, being studied and tested like a lab rat? Was the person in the room next to her really another nutcase, maybe thinking that he was a superhero and he needs to save the planet before time runs out, and not that horribly loud and rather impolite idiot that enjoys old outdated cartoons early in the morning? How can a person know for sure?  
  
Clarice then decided to shift her thoughts slightly, and had started to ponder over the people in her life that she considered insane. The only problem was, she had no clear answers. Everyone seemed to be insane in their own little ways. Pearsall, for one, does a fairly good job as boss, but at the same time Clarice would never trust the man with a fork and elastic, let alone a loaded shotgun. Then there was Doctor Lecter, and man who has been officially labeled insane, yet to Clarice he was probably one of the sanest people in her life. Psychotic most defiantly, but insane? 'Well, maybe just a little bit,' Clarice had thought to herself, 'but aren't we all at least just a little insane?'  
  
She couldn't help but grin at her unexpected insight. Yeah, what kind of sane person would willingly go down into those dungeons to interview a cannibalistic madman? What kind of sane person would stay with the FBI even after they decided to make her their personal bitch? And what kind of sane person would tolerate someone in the room next to her roaring his head off at four in the morning without snapping?  
  
As the familiar theme song to 'Rocky and Bullwinkle' floated through the wall, Clarice was reminded of a saying that she had once heard. 'Music is the soundtrack to our lives.' Clarice had thought about what song her life was playing right now at this time in her life, and had shaken her head in slight amusement at the thought that at the moment her personal soundtrack seemed to be playing 'Send in the Clowns.' She found it rather fitting, however, considering that her life at the moment was like a circus. And at the moment, she was tripping down that tight rope with no visible net to save her from that always looming fall to the ground.  
  
Her train of thought was interrupted by a knock at the door. Looking at the clock, she had been surprised to learn that she had spent almost three hours in bed contemplating on these matters. Jumping out of bed and draping a light blue housecoat over her shoulders, she had answered the door. Standing opposite to her was a young man, looking no older than twenty five, with a handful of files. "I have a delivery for Clarice Starling, from Clint Pearsall," he had told her, all the while eyeing her mangled appearance.  
  
Clarice just nodded, ignoring his stares. "Yes, that would be me," she had told him while he handed her the files. "Thank you very much," she had said whilst shutting the door again.  
  
Hours later here she was, chugging down coffee as if it was water and scanning the papers contained in the files with her eyes. Pictures, medical forms, criminal histories, and dozens of other various papers described the type of lives lived by each of these people, people that had probably never met each other, but all having at least one thing in common, all being the victims of a brutal murderer named Chimera. Clarice was searching for something, anything, which could have linked all of these people in life; she just knew that there had to be a connection somehow. After a good fifteen minutes of staring and contemplating with no avail, she finally decided that if there was anything at all linking all these victims, then she wasn't going to find them without help. Sighing in defeat, Clarice retrieved her black shoes from the floor and hoped that Jadis had some coffee ready once Clarice got to her room.  
  
****************************  
  
Jadis looked at herself in the mirror that hung in her room's way-too-small bathroom. The scar underneath her eye seemed to almost glow with a light all its own, bringing back a flood of painful reminiscences. She was only five years old when she got that scar, the memory still devastatingly clear as if it was only yesterday..  
  
It was near her bedtime and her mother and father were urging her to go to bed. As her mother bent down to pick young Jadis up, her father had let out a blood-curdling scream, then fell face-first onto the floor, the crimson blood staining the white carpet. Jadis let out a scream, her heart pounding at what she had just witnessed. She strained her eyes, looking for any signs of life at all from her father's motionless body.  
  
Her mother picked her small daughter up, her only thought was to save her child and get out of the house. Jadis could still feel her mother's tears of despair and fear fall in her hair as her mother raced through the house with Jadis in her arms, desperate to escape with their lives. 'The door..' Jadis remembered seeing the door. It was so near, yet so far at the same time. Seconds stretched into hours, or so it seemed, everything was happening in slow motion. Her mother had her hand on the doorknob, one more twist and they would be safe.  
  
Another scream, this time it was her mother. Jadis, through her tears, could just make out a dark figure standing behind her mother, his gloved hands having a firm grip on a large clump of her brown hair. Jadis cried harder, her tiny hands were now reaching for the doorknob.  
  
A stinging pain met her cheek, causing her to fall out of her mother's protective arms and onto the cold, hard floor. Jadis was now bawling, unable to handle this unspeakable pain that her little five year old body was now experiencing. She kept her eyes tightly shut, not wanting to see the blood that was falling to the floor. Her hands pressed against the wound, hoping that the blood will stop flowing.  
  
A strong, forceful hand had gripped her hair and now was dragging both her and her mother across the floor. Pain, so much pain, so much blood, so much screaming. Jadis kept her little eyes shut, afraid of what she might see. She felt herself being dragged over something lumpy, something wet, something dead. Jadis wailed even harder, that would be the last time that she would ever touch her father.  
  
At last her captor stopped and let his victims go. Jadis relaxed a little, but it was short lived. A hard boot to her stomach was enough to cause her more discomfort and pain, and another scream escaping her mother was enough to open her tear-filled eyes.  
  
Her mother had been thrown onto the bed, blood and tears staining her beautiful face. Jadis could see their attacker now, though black clothing and a dark mask hid his features. She could see the bloody knife in his hand, which was now ripping through her mother's nightgown. Jadis didn't dare watch what came next, so she had shut her eyes again. The only thing was, she could still hear her mothers screams of pain and terror, no matter how hard she had tried to block them out, they wouldn't go away..  
  
Jadis snapped out of her thoughts, her scar stinging as badly as it did all those years ago from the mere memory. Every night her mother's screams while being raped right there in front of her plagued her sleep. The neighbors had heard them and called the police, but it wasn't quick enough to save her life. The bastard had left young Jadis to bleed to death, but she had survived somehow. Some days, however, she wished that she didn't. The killer never was identified, and little five year old Jadis was left to the orphanage.  
  
Looking back at her reflection, Jadis looked at the person that she hid everyday, the person that she didn't want to admit she was. But at the same time, someday she wanted to tear off the masks that she wore everyday, both the physical and the mental. When she was sixteen, she had learned something about herself, something that she had refused to believe at the time, and still had a hard time believing. Aside from her living nightmare that was her family's deaths, the secret that she held was the reason she had decided to join the FBI in the first place.  
  
A loud knock at the door jolted Jadis back to reality. Quickly slipping on a small, subliminal, yet effective mask, she stole one last look into the mirror before walking out of the small bathroom and to the door.  
  
*********************  
  
"Morning Monroe." Clarice greeted the young agent as she opened the door to her room.  
  
"Good morning Agent Starling." Jadis returned the greeting while motioning Clarice to come in. "I was just about to order some coffee for myself, would you like a cup as well?"  
  
Clarice's ears perked up at the invitation. "I'd love a cup, thank you Monroe." she answered a little more eagerly than she had originally intended.  
  
Jadis laughed and ordered two cups of the steaming breakfast beverage for the both of them. While waiting, Clarice handed Jadis the files that they were to go through that day. "That poor guy from last night was Gerald Harrison, a retired university professor. He was last seen leaving the supermarket downtown, about five hours before his body was found." Clarice told the other woman while sitting herself down onto the small couch.  
  
Jadis nodded and quickly flipped through the papers, doing a fast scan of the profiles. "What about Chimera? Have they found any new evidence yet?" she wondered aloud.  
  
Clarice shook her head. "Not even a measly little hair. Unless there's something in that file that I missed, we have no more stuff to work on than we started with." Clarice sighed, obviously not looking forward to the next couple of hours.  
  
The other agent opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by another knock at the door. The two women jumped to attention, licking their lips in anticipation of the coffee that they both knew was waiting behind that door.  
  
*****************************  
  
Across the street in a small, but comfortable outdoor café, Hannibal was sitting at one of the many shaded tables, keeping a careful eye on the hotel. It was easy enough to track down where she was staying, since this was the only hotel in the Bureau's current price range in this small seaside town.  
  
In front of him on the clean, round table sat the newspaper he had purchased earlier that morning. Reading over the list of victims of the Chimera attacks so far, Hannibal wondered if Clarice had figured it out yet, what linked them all together. If she hasn't, then he just hoped that she stayed inside tonight, or else her name just may be added to this list.  
  
Getting up from his seat, Hannibal decided that he would return later tonight to see if his little Starling had indeed figured it out, or was in need of a little help. Either way, he was looking forward to the prospect of a reunion with his dear Clarice.  
  
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(A/N: Phew! Another chapter done!! Sorry if some of the details in this one didn't make much sense, but rest assured, they will become clear eventually, I promise!!)  
  
-SP 


	3. Predator and Prey

(A/N: Sorry for the long delay in posting this, got a lil' sidetracked. Anyways, as always, thank you to everyone that has reviewed! Okay, onto the story!)  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own anything in this story except for the characters that I've made up myself.  
  
Give Me Darkness, Give Me Light..  
  
Chapter 2: Predator and Prey  
  
Clarice rubbed her temples in frustration. "This is getting nowhere," she muttered under her breath.  
  
Jadis wearily agreed. "I know. We've been looking over this for hours and have come up with just about nothing!" She shook her head in exhaustion and laid back onto the couch to sooth her back, which was now aching due to Jadis being bent over reading and looking over the small table in front of her all day.  
  
The quickly disappearing sun seemed to almost taunt the two worn out FBI agents. Other than a quick meal at around lunch time, the women had been wracking their brains almost all day to find something, anything, which could help them track down the person behind the persona of the killer known as Chimera. Through all their theories, arguments, discussions and hunches, all the duo could come up with was that Chimera had a thing for seeing and causing pain and that he must live in a fairly secluded place outside the city, due to Clarice's observation that if he lived near others then someone else must have heard the victim's screams while he tortured them to death. Apart from that, anything else that they could think up about him was already known to the police and FBI, nothing new.  
  
Clarice sighed and sat back down onto her chair in front of the mess of papers and photos that was the table top. "Okay, let's start from the top, again," she more or less growled. "Who was the first victim?"  
  
Jadis picked up one of the many papers from the table and read. "Francis Parker, age 45, a tourist from Chicago, a grade seven teacher, has a wife of 23 years, one son and two daughters, last seen on Saturday night leaving his motel room alone. His body was found in a dumpster behind the local McDonalds about 6 hours after his disappearance by a group of kids who were wandering the street. Wallet and all of its contents was still with the body, including all the money and identification."  
  
Clarice shook her head. "He obviously isn't after money." She mused quietly, deep in thought.  
  
"Maybe he's just doing it for fame," Jadis suggested. "He just might want to be on the evening news and on the front page of the newspaper to cause fear."  
  
"Possibly," the other agent shrugged. "Or it could be some sick fetish to torture people like this. Maybe even revenge, he may have known all these people when they were still alive, and now he's after everyone that has caused him pain. To make them suffer like they had caused him to."  
  
Jadis looked up at Clarice. "But you don't think that is why he's doing it, don't you?"  
  
Clarice hesitated before responding. "I honestly don't know what to think at this point Munroe. I just have this feeling that we're missing something, something very important. A missing piece of the puzzle.." She trailed off, her eyes scanning the table before resting on another piece of paper. She picked it up and read it over. It was the details about the third victim.  
  
"Christina Smith, 55 years old, a bank manager from New York, a husband and two sons, was last seen walking home from the mall, found dumped on the sidewalk about a day later. Again, nothing missing." She read out loud.  
  
Jadis looked up again. "That one was the farthest away. He's obviously not restricting himself to just this area. But he must live in this area, or at least very near it. Also, look at the ages of these people, all either middle aged or senior."  
  
Clarice nodded. "Yeah, that's why I don't think that the victims are completely random. Why would a person go all the way to New York just to kill someone for no reason?" The hotel room was starting to wear and tear on her. She set the paper back onto the mess and got up.  
  
"Where are you going?" Jadis asked.  
  
"I just need some fresh air," Clarice responded as she reached for her coat. "If I stay locked in here any longer then I'm going to have a mental breakdown. I won't be long, but if you need me then I'll have my cell phone turned on."  
  
Jadis nodded. "Alright, I'll stay here and try to sort out this mess then. If I think of anything I'll let you know."  
  
Clarice gave the younger agent a quick nod and went out the door.  
  
********************  
  
In the dark alley beside the hotel, he stood alone, just waiting to pounce on his newfound prey. He knew that it would be only pure luck that she would decide to come out of the comfort of the warm inviting hotel and into the dark forbidden streets at this late at night, but lady luck had been very gracious to him as of late.  
  
The mid-autumn wind picked up slightly, causing the dark figure to pull his black coat closer to himself. A small shiver went through his body as the cold gust passed. The empty street before him seemed to grow darker and darker with every passing moment, and he savored every moment of it, grateful for the cover the growing darkness gave him. As the air got colder, almost to the point of freezing, he held his ground, like a predator stalking his prey, anticipating the taste of the meal with a cold and anxious desire.  
  
Much like the predator, he had been tracking his prey ever since she had made her first appearance at the site of his fourth victim. That had given him quite the ego boost, to know that the FBI were now out to get him as well, let alone putting the famous Special Agent Clarice Starling on the case. Although he had imagined various scenarios about how to capture her, something had always told him that possibility was far out of his reach. But now, she was so close.  
  
The only thing better than Starling would be to have the man himself in his grasps, the man who had, whether he knew it or not, caused him so much pain and suffering, who had destroyed his dreams and future. At the back of his mind he toyed with the thought that, possibly through Starling, he could get to the person he wanted the most, him...  
  
His train of thought was suddenly broken by the sound of footsteps coming his way down the street towards his hiding place. He knew by instinct that it was her. With an indication of a grin, he pulled down his dark mask and slipped back further into the shadows, and waited...  
  
**************************  
  
The cool air nipped at Clarice's form as she stepped into the silent and empty street outside. Taking a deep, grateful breath, she closed her eyes and leaned against the brick wall. The darkness was soothing to her throbbing head, and the openness was welcoming after spending the majority of her day inside a small hotel room surrounded with pictures of mutilated bodies and endless piles of papers describing the lives that were lead by the people behind the corpses. Right now she wanted to keep her mind off such matters and just enjoy her time in the refreshing air.  
  
Deciding that her legs deserved some work, seeing as she hadn't been able to go for a good jog in almost a week, Clarice pushed herself away from the wall and started to make her way down the sidewalk.  
  
She had barely taken even two steps when her instincts suddenly kicked in. The hairs on the back of her neck were standing on end and an involuntary tremor slightly wracked her body before she instinctively tensed up. Her hand went to the .45 that was just about always resting in the holster underneath her coat. The feel of the icy metal of her trusty gun underneath the skin of her hand never failed to give Clarice a feeling of determination and mild confidence. Gun poised and breath steadied, she quietly moved down the street, her ears taking in every little bump and crack.  
  
There was an alley between the hotel and the next building, and Clarice was intently scanning what little she could see of it as she made her way towards it as silently as she possibly could. She could feel her heart beat faster and harder as she approached. Her fingers gripped the gun tighter and the wind seemed to get colder by the second.  
  
Clarice could now see down the alley, or at least what the darkness would let her see. Nothing except a dumpster and an abandoned lawn chair met her eyes. She started to make her way down when a suddenly movement at the corner of her eye caused Clarice to turn around.  
  
A small grey creature bounded across the street and back into the waiting darkness. Clarice's mind quickly identified it as a cat, and a rather scruffy looking one at that. Clarice shook her head, as if to clear her mind of the thought and get it to focus on the task at hand.  
  
She had barely even taken the time to register those thoughts when another sound alerted Clarice's ears. Before she even had the chance to react, for in a flash she found herself pinned against the wall of the hotel, with a strong gloved hand firmly grasped over her mouth and the other with a sturdy hold on the gun, wrenching it from her hands. She tried to struggle against the other person's grip, only to find that it was nearly impossible to move considering that the man's girth was now pressing against her own, making her practically immobile.  
  
She could now just barely make out a leering masked face with icy steel gray eyes piercing into Clarice's own orbs of blue. She could smell a tinge of what smelled like beer on his hot repulsive breath as he spoke to her. "Now Agent Starling," his deep intense voice growled, "we can do this the easy way, or we can do this the hard way. Come with me quietly and you won't get hurt yet. If you decide to make a fuss, then I'm going to have to be a lil' more persuasive, and trust me, you don't want that. Got it?"  
  
Clarice somehow managed to move her head slightly up and down despite the incredible hold he had on her head. 'If only he loosens me for a second, then I might be able to..' Clarice rapidly considered in her head.  
  
As if in reaction to her thoughts, a loud beeping sound coming from her jacket alerted both individuals back from their thoughts and into reality. The sudden ringing of her cell phone was enough for her capture to relinquish his iron hold on Clarice just long enough for her to tackle the man down to the ground and try to gain enough distance to get to her cell phone without worrying about him overtaking her again, but close enough to keep an eye on him to make sure he didn't try anything. Unfortunately though her gun was thrown to the ground and was now hidden from her sight, but Clarice tried not to dwell on it for the time being.  
  
Her victory, however, was short lived. In her scramble to put distance between them, the man had grabbed a hold of her left ankle and caused her to tumble hard into the ground below her. The cell phone flew from her hand, and she found Chimera looming over her winded and pained body.  
  
*******************  
  
Jadis threw down her cell phone onto the couch and in less than five minutes was out the door, pistol in hand. She had begun to worry when Clarice didn't return after a half hour, and now that Clarice wasn't answering her phone was more than enough to convince Jadis to go after her friend.  
  
The cool, refreshing outdoor air, under any other circumstances would have felt like a hug from an old friend. But at the immediate moment, it was more like an accomplice of the enemy, engulfing anyone foolish enough to step outside into its waiting claws. Jadis shivered slightly before stepping out into the darkness.  
  
She kept her steps light as she silently made her way down the empty street. Her ears suddenly picked up a sound, ringing. A sense of severe dread stabbed her straight into her heart as she swiftly made her way to the source.  
  
In seconds the dark alley loomed in front of her. Jadis could hear the telltale ringing of Clarice's cell, which was now lying on to cold ground in front of her, but no Clarice.  
  
Near the end of the alley, a quick flash of movement prompted Jadis to force herself onward. Breaking into a run, she could now just barely make out two struggling forms, one of which was a very visibly agitated woman. The other figure seemed to have a firm grip on the woman's mouth and waist. Only when she got a few steps closer did Jadis see the white van that the man was trying desperately to maneuver the woman into.  
  
"Starling!" Jadis screamed in a mixture of relief, fear and fury.  
  
The man had spotted Jadis approaching and, seeing no other way, bashed Clarice's head against the van just hard enough to knock her out cold. Now in a rush, he none-too-gently threw her limp body into the back and scrambled to get behind the wheel.  
  
Jadis was running at top speed now, her lungs felt like they were on fire. She ignored the stabbing pain in her chest and ran on. A protruding metal beam grazed her right arm as she sped by. She desperately tried to pay no mind to the warm blood that was now oozing from her wound and kept her focus on the now retreating van.  
  
At the last minute, just before the vehicle was gone from her sight, Jadis aimed at the muddy tires and fired, hoping to at least flatten a tire or two. She couldn't read the license plate, and she would never know if her shots had hit their mark.  
  
Jadis finally stopped dead in her tracks and stared down the empty street. Rage surged through her as the feeling of failure came over her full force. She groped for her phone, only to remember that it was still in the hotel room. No cell to phone for help, no useful information to track him down, and no Clarice.  
  
"Fuck!!" Jadis took out her anger on a nearby trash can, her foot leaving a deep indent on the once smooth surface.  
  
She felt so helpless, so weak. Jadis took one last look down the concrete path that had just moments before swallowed Clarice, and shoved her gun back into its holster. She knew that she should get back to her hotel and call for back up, but she didn't want that. All Jadis wanted was to go after them herself.  
  
Finally surrendering herself to what she should do as opposed to what she wanted to do, Jadis turned around and started to head back to the room and her phone. She didn't even see the looming figure standing in her way until she had ran into it head on. Falling onto the cold hard ground, Jadis took a couple seconds to get over her immediate shock before a voice shook her to full attention.  
  
"My apologies, Miss. Munroe," a raspy, metallic male voice greeted her ears. "Here, allow me to assist you back to your feet."  
  
As a gloved hand reached out to Jadis, she could help but think that she had heard that voice before, just never quite this way. Not thinking too much of it, she grasped his offered hand and was swiftly hoisted back upright.  
  
Jadis took this opportunity to look over the stranger. Looking up into his face, her green eyes suddenly became wide and her feet took a few involuntary steps backward. She would have run away at top speed if she had not been captured by the man's piercing maroon eyes.  
  
Only two words entered Jadis' head as she suddenly realized that she is now getting much more than she had bargained for.  
  
'Oh shit..'  
  
At that moment Jadis didn't know what scared her more, the thought that Clarice was more than likely abducted by the psychotic killer Chimera, or the reality that right there in front of Jadis stood the cannibalistic madman, Dr. Hannibal Lecter.  
  
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(A/N: *massages aching fingers* Whoa, turned out longer than I thought! Anyways, hopefully I'll be a lil' quicker with putting up new chapters than I was with this one, so look for chapter 4 in a few days! Hope you've enjoyed it so far!)  
  
-SP 


	4. Naked Truths

(A/N: Sorry about the delay, but, finally, here's yet another chapter! Enjoy!)  
  
Give Me Darkness, Give Me Light..  
  
Chapter 4: Naked Truths  
  
Clarice's mind was swirling as she struggled to open her eyes. An intense pain on her skull greeted her back to consciousness, the blood now crusted on her forehead. She tried to move, but quickly found out that she was lashed by her hands and feet to a rather crude metal chair, which was bolted to a wooden floor. The air felt damp and sticky with a thick, rancid, smelling stench lingering. Clarice could barely even make out her surroundings, considering that the only light came from a small lamp at the far end of the room. What she could make out however, was enough to confirm that she wasn't in a house, probably a large shed or an old barn. No windows and no furniture except for a table where the lamp sat, the chair in which Clarice was now currently occupying, and another chair to her far right. She could see no doors in the meager light that the lamp provided, and all but the wall opposite of her were hidden from Clarice's sight.  
  
The blow that she took to the head had left her a little disoriented, but despite this she quickly tried to gather her thoughts about her situation. Replaying the events that lead herself here in the first place, she wondered if Jadis had informed anyone about her abduction yet. 'Well of course she did!' Clarice scolded herself in her head. 'Really Starling, cut the kid some slack! But what to do until help gets here?'  
  
"Well, trying to get out might be an obvious answer," Clarice silently muttered under her breath to herself. Growling, she maneuvered her fingers to the piece of rope that held her hands together, trying to find someway to undo it and win her freedom back.  
  
A sharp click alerted her attention back to the room. Her head shot up just in time to see a door that was previously hidden by the shadows to her far right close behind a dark, silent figure. In his hand was a small package of sorts. Clarice tensed up slightly and her fingers went quickly back to work.  
  
The man set the package onto the table beside the lamp, all the while keeping his back to the woman tied to the chair behind him. Clarice's eyes went hard as they stared unblinking at her captor. 'Chimera,' her mind hissed. 'He must be Chimera. Only one way to find out for sure...'  
  
Clarice lifted her head a little higher so that if he were to turn around her eyes would meet his. As her fingers still worked away behind her, she opened her mouth to speak. "Who the hell are you?"  
  
She knew that her tone was cold, she had meant it to be that way. At the moment she was bent on getting answers and getting herself out of this alive. 'Come on....' she begged in her mind, 'come on, talk damn you!' She could almost feel the effects of her head injury wear off slightly, as if the pain had given pity on her situation. Clarice stayed as still as a rock, save for her constantly wriggling fingers. She waited patiently for a response of any kind from the soundless individual in front of her.  
  
For a few seconds the man gave no indication that he had even heard her. After finishing his task on the table, he finally turned his attention to Clarice. His steel gray eyes pierced straight into Clarice's own blue pupils. He was no longer masked, and now showed his graying, light brown hair, which looked like it hadn't been properly taken care of in days. The light revealed his pale complexion and the deep purple circles that had taken residence underneath his sunken eyes. He seemed to be in fairly good shape for his age, despite the sickly looking image that his face provided.  
  
"Really Agent Starling," his deep voice was quiet, but loud enough for Clarice to make out what was being said. "I'd have thought that you'd figure that out by now." He stepped a little closer to her, gradually closing the gap between them.  
  
Clarice's gaze barely even wavered as he bent down closer to her. His eyes were still stabbing into her own. When only a few inches of space separated their faces, he opened his mouth to speak again, his breath hot and nauseating on her features. "Just in case you haven't figured it out however, allow me to introduce myself then. I am Chimera."  
  
*********************  
  
Jadis was sitting on the couch back in her hotel room, nursing the gash that she had suffered earlier on the arm. But at that moment, her mind was elsewhere. About ten thousand thoughts were running through her head, all getting more and more harder to comprehend the more she thought about them. The only thing that kept her from snapping entirely was fear, the fear of what may happen to Clarice if she didn't at least try to help her, and the fear of the man that was now in the room with Jadis, looking through the papers and photos on the table.  
  
Barely a word was said between Jadis and Dr. Lecter since arriving back at the hotel room. On Jadis' part, she had just thought that it was better for her to keep her mouth shut rather than doing something that she may regret for the rest of her life. She normally wasn't a fearful woman, but the amount of sheer terror that Dr. Lecter could evoke with nothing more than a single glance was enough for Jadis to fear for her life.  
  
At the back of her mind, however, she was battling conflicting emotions. One part of her wanted to run and go for help. Another wanted to confront the doctor head on and slam his ass back in jail. Yet another wanted to ask him for help; help her save Clarice. Then, there was a final voice, telling her that this was the chance that she has been waiting for.....  
  
'No, not now!' Jadis yelled at herself in her head. 'Right now focus on Clarice, everything else comes second. There will be another time.'  
  
'But what if there isn't?' Another thought argued. 'This may be the only chance you'll ever have...'  
  
Jadis' train of thought was cut short as Dr. Lecter loomed over her. Jadis had to force herself to look up at him, against her greatest wishes. His face was expressionless, making Jadis even more uncomfortable than she already was. She swallowed hard, but her eyes involuntarily held his gaze. There were a few moments of silence as the two observed each other, until it was broken by the doctor's metallic voice.  
  
"Tell me, Special Agent Monroe, which voice of reason won the battle?"  
  
Jadis was taken aback. "Excuse me?"  
  
"You seemed to been having an internal battle with yourself, what you should do versus what you want to do, I assume. Well, which won?"  
  
Jadis swallowed yet again. She really didn't want to discuss what was going on in her head with this man. "Neither," she replied meekly.  
  
Dr. Lecter seemed to study her eyes, as if he was looking for something in them. Jadis forced herself to stay as calm as she could on the outside at least, but in the inside she was panicking in the worse way. 'Will he see it?' she wondered above all else.  
  
Clenching her teeth, Jadis decided that it was her turn to ask a question. She was amazed at how much courage that took. "What are you doing here Dr. Lecter?"  
  
"I'm here to offer my help with your new case, Chimera, I believe." Jadis blinked but said nothing. Dr. Lecter continued. "Tell me, what do know about him, aside from the constant drabble that keeps repeating in the tabloids."  
  
The young agent hesitated for a second, not sure if she should trust him or not. Not seeing any other favorable alternative however, she caved in to his request. "We figure that he must live on the outskirts of town. He seems to wait a while before killing his victims; our best bet is that he waits until around midnight to finish them. He seems to have a fetish with seeing pain, possibly as some sort of revenge, making his victims suffer like he did. In his tortures he seems to just use everyday household items, like pencils and sewing pins, nothing more. That's about all we have at this point."  
  
"And what about the victims?"  
  
"They are all either middle aged or seniors. All were found with Chimera's signature on them carved in brail. Other than the ages, nothing seems to be linking any of these victims together." Jadis shook her head. "In all, we have gotten just about nowhere on this case."  
  
Dr. Lecter looked at her a little harder. "And how far have you gone into their histories exactly?"  
  
"As much as the resources given to us allowed us to," Jadis answered. "Which was, unfortunately, very little." She sighed and wondered why Lecter was asking her all these questions. Then a thought hit her full force, along with a faint glimmer of hope. She looked up at the doctor. "You know what links the victims, don't you? You just wanted to see if we figured it out yet, haven't you?"  
  
"Perhaps."  
  
Jadis swallowed before asking, "What will it take for you to tell me what it is?"  
  
Lecter was silent for a few seconds, all the while Jadis could feel his eyes studying her again, almost as if he was searching for something. She had to bit down on the inside of her cheek until it was raw to keep herself from bolting straight out of the room, away from him. The feeling only got worse when he began to speak again. "I assure you, it won't take too much. Are you familiar with the concept of quid quo pro, Special Agent Monroe?"  
  
Jadis bit down harder, on the verge of drawing blood. Clarice had told her about this. "I tell you things, you tell me things."  
  
Dr. Lecter grinned and nodded. "Very good, I see that you've been talking with Clarice. Well Agent Monroe, quid quo pro, yes or no?"  
  
The hold that her teeth had on the inside of her cheek had now drawn out a few drops of her own warm, metallic tasting blood. Swallowing the droplets down, she wondered for a second if that made her a cannibal too. Quickly mentally shaking those thoughts from her head, she stood up to face the doctor eye to eye, swallowing down her fear as much as she could along with the blood. "I had already told you all I know about the case so far. I have nothing more to-"  
  
"What makes you think that I'm looking for information on Chimera from you now?" Lecter cut her off, rendering Jadis back to silence. "No Agent Monroe, what I'm looking for from you is much more... personal I guess you could say. I would like to know a little more about you, that's all"  
  
Jadis tensed up. "And why should I tell you about me? How is this going to help Clarice?"  
  
"For one, the quicker you decide to cooperate with me, the quicker we can go to Clarice's rescue. Second reason being, this way you and I can learn to trust each other a little more, seeing as how a rescue attempt would require a considerable amount of trust."  
  
Dr. Lecter paused, allowing Jadis to think this over for a few brief seconds, waiting for a response. Jadis didn't know what to think. On one hand she could try to apprehend one of the FBI's Ten Most Wanted right here and now and run the risk of losing Clarice and her own life, or she could try to trust this cannibalistic serial killer enough to possible save Clarice but risk losing her job and possibly her life. Jadis didn't see much of a choice. 'I hope that you'll understand Starling,' she thought silently in her head, almost sure that Clarice wouldn't approve of what she was about to do.  
  
"What would you like to know Dr. Lecter?" Jadis just felt like she sold her soul to the devil himself.  
  
"That's a good girl," Lecter grinned yet again, sending slight shivers up Jadis' spine. He appeared to be studying her face again before speaking again. "That's quite the nasty scar you bear underneath your eye, a knife blade I assume." Jadis unconsciously lifted her hand and brushed her fingers over it. "A reminder of an earlier assignment, a mark of courage of sorts?"  
  
Jadis shook her head. "No," she responded quietly. "I got it when I was five."  
  
Dr. Lecter raised a brow. "A scar from a knife blade at five years old? How did you acquire such an injury at that young of age?"  
  
Jadis swallowed, her eyes downcast. "One night someone broke into our house. He had shot my father," she paused for second before continuing. "My mother had tried to get me out of the house, but just before we could get out of the door he got hold of us. In the process he had pulled out a knife and sliced me open there on my face. He then pulled both me and my mother into the bedroom..." She trailed off, the memories threatening to invade her at any minute.  
  
Dr. Lecter snapped her back to reality. "What happened in the bedroom?"  
  
Jadis looked back up at the doctor. "He had left me to bleed to death on the floor, while he raped my mother, right there in front of me. I don't know how long it was until the police and ambulances got there, but it was too late. They never did catch him, and my mother had died in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. After that, I was taken to the orphanage and was adopted within a year."  
  
Jadis lowered her eyes again. She couldn't believe that she had opened herself to him that much. 'For you Clarice,' she silently said in her head.  
  
There were a few moments of silence before Dr. Lecter spoke. "There's more, isn't there? It's about your father; you were almost hesitant about discussing him. Why?"  
  
Jadis felt the color drain from her face. 'No, not now, I can't....' Thinking quickly back to her conversations with Clarice, she said the first thing that came to her mind.  
  
"Quid quo pro Doctor. What links each of the victims to each other?"  
  
Lecter's eyes seemed to get slightly darker. Jadis suddenly wondered if that was a wise move on her part. Despite her sudden doubts however, she somehow managed to keep her gaze with the doctor's.  
  
"What was the first victim's name?" Lecter asked, although Jadis knew that he already had knowledge of that information.  
  
"Francis Parker."  
  
Jadis could have sworn that she saw something in the doctor's maroon eyes at the mention of that name. A shimmer of something, but she couldn't put her finger on it until he spoke again. "One of my first patients, a rather hard case if I do say so myself. He couldn't handle the pressure and stress of being a new teacher, considering that he utterly despised children."  
  
Jadis looked at him wide-eyed. "Christina Smith?"  
  
The same look was back in his eyes. "An old romantic attachment, and a rather brief one at that. She was more concerned with her own desires and urges than being in a relationship."  
  
'Oh shit!' Jadis looked over the third victim. "Doctor Arnold DeLong?"  
  
"A former employer of mine, and a rather degrading one at that."  
  
"Annabelle Hilton?"  
  
"My first secretary. A charming young woman she was"  
  
"The last victim, Gerald Harrison?"  
  
"My old psychology professor."  
  
Jadis head was in a swirl. "So Chimera must be someone from your past! Who is it?"  
  
Dr. Lecter shook his head. "That, sadly, I have no knowledge of. It could be any number of people unfortunately."  
  
Jadis thought fast. She knew that the local police department had the files of everyone in this town and in the outskirts on their computers. They didn't hand them over to them for the FBI's use yet, but she wondered....  
  
She dashed to the laptop lying on the table, hoping that those endless hours hacking into the FBI's computers back at Quantico will now come into good use. Jadis was just a beginner hacker, but she knew her way around government computers enough to know how to access them with ease. In minutes a list of all the files of the townspeople filled the screen. She hesitated. "What should I search for?" She wondered out loud.  
  
"Was there something odd about the van?" Dr. Lecter watched over her shoulder, causing a involuntary chill to rise up her spinal cord. "A trail of some kind perhaps?"  
  
Jadis wracked her brain, thinking back to the van. 'Old... white.... A trail? What trail? Unless.... That's it! The tires! They were muddy! He must live in the country then. So he might be a year 'round cottager, the others would have already left.' She narrowed down her search to those two details and the list became significantly smaller.  
  
She began to scroll through the list. "Mr. and Mrs. Jeffery Mackenzie?"  
  
Jadis looked at Dr. Lecter, looking for some hint of recognition. Nothing.  
  
She kept scrolling down and listing off names. Dr. Lecter showed no signs of recognition until Jadis said the name, "Richard Silversted?"  
  
Immediately Jadis could see the shimmer in his eyes. She read over Silversted's information, and everything fell into place. "It's him, isn't it? He's Chimera."  
  
The look on Lecter's face said it all. It was him. Jadis quickly scribbled down the address on a scrap piece of paper, shut off the laptop and was about to head out of the door, not even bothering asking the doctor about his knowledge of Richard Silversted, when she felt herself being held back by her arm. She quickly found herself between the wall and the menacing figure of Dr. Lecter.  
  
"Agent Monroe, must I remind you that you still haven't told me about your father."  
  
Jadis' heart stopped. 'Oh shit, not good...'  
  
Hesitating, she decided that it was best to just come clean. 'For you Starling...' she said in her head before pouring out what she had tried to keep hidden for so long.  
  
"The man that was shot that night wasn't my true father. I never knew my true father though. My mother had told me that he had died before I was even born."  
  
Jadis desperately hoped that was all he wanted. She hoped that he wouldn't see it. Just when she thought that she was safe and he was satisfied, her hope was utterly shattered.  
  
"Why don't you take out those green contact lenses then?"  
  
'Shit!'  
  
Jadis just stared at him, not believing that he saw them. "I..." she stuttered. "I can't."  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Because I can't!" Jadis almost screamed.  
  
Lecter leaned in closer to her. She could feel his breath hot on her face. "What are you trying to hide then? What is more important, your secret or Clarice's life?"  
  
Jadis hesitated. She knew that he wasn't going to let her leave until she showed him what she has hidden for all these years. 'You own me big time Clarice.'  
  
Her hands went to her eyes, and her head went down. With the contacts, her mask, out, she felt exposed, naked. She didn't let him see her eyes yet. She kept them tightly shut as she lifted her head. She knew that he will see it once she opened them.  
  
Lecter's voice came again, a hint of impatience showing through in it. "What are you hiding Agent Monroe?"  
  
'Take the plunge now Jadis, there's no turning back.' Clenching her teeth, she finally opened her eyes. Instead of maroon meeting green, it was now completely different.  
  
Maroon meeting maroon.  
  
Jadis swallowed and let the truth finally come out. "I'm your daughter, Dr. Lecter."  
  
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(A/N: Hope you're enjoying it so far! As always, thank you to everyone that has reviewed!)  
  
-SP 


	5. Born As a Ghost

(A/N: Glad you liked the surprise from the last chapter! Hope you enjoy this one. Happy reading!)  
  
Give Me Darkness, Give Me Light...  
  
  
  
Chapter 5: Born As a Ghost  
  
  
  
Clarice's fingers continued their seemingly hopeless endeavor as she held her gaze on the figure that was Chimera. He had backed away slightly as if to see her response to his introduction. Whatever he was looking for from Clarice he didn't find it. Instead she stayed emotionless and calm, which only succeeded in irritating him. It only got worse as Clarice decided to start pounding him with questions.  
  
"What do you want from me then?"  
  
Chimera grinned, "Nothing much really, just some information about a certain someone and we'll see where to go from there."  
  
"And who may this certain someone be?" Clarice asked.  
  
"Someone that I know that you're quite familiar with I assure you. But, if you choose not to cooperate, then I'll have to be a little more forceful and I know that you don't want that."  
  
"Who is it?" Clarice repeated her question, allowing some impatience to show through.  
  
Chimera chuckled. "Impatient are we? Very well, let's get on with it then." He pulled the other chair in front of Clarice and sat down. Leaning forward, he locked his eyes with hers again. "Tell me everything that you know about Hannibal Lecter, and don't spare a single detail."  
  
Clarice blinked, not sure if she heard him right. "Hannibal Lecter? Why him?"  
  
Chimera's grin returned, "Let's just say, I've been meaning to get reacquainted with an old friend."  
  
Clarice clenched her teeth. 'Reacquainted with an old friend?' she didn't even want to think about the meaning of that statement, but she forced herself to anyways. Various different scenarios flashed through her mind, everything from revenge to assistance. She didn't even realize how long she had been silent until Chimera's voice brought her back to reality.  
  
"Agent Starling," he growled, "lest I remind you the consequences for stalling. Get on with it or else I'll make good on my threats."  
  
Clarice narrowed her eyes. She wasn't ready to tell him anything yet, not until her answered her questions first. "And why would I want to tell you? I'm not saying a damn thing until you give me a good reason for me to tell you this information."  
  
Chimera, now thoroughly irritated, lunged forward at Clarice. His face was now mere millimeters away from hers, his breath ragged and uneven. His gray eyes almost seemed to turn pitch black as he spoke. "So you are going to be difficult now are you? In case you haven't noticed, I don't have a very good hold of my patience, so spill the beans now and I'll be happy and no pain for you. Deal?"  
  
Clarice clenched her teeth. She was suddenly feeling oddly protective, but of what or whom she didn't dare think about it. She knew that he was going to torture her anyways, with or without giving the information he so desperately wanted. She quickly weighed her options; give him the information he wanted, get killed more slowly, and possibly risk drawing more danger to Lecter, something that, even though she didn't want to admit it right then and there, she didn't want to do. Option two, don't give him the information and die quicker, unless Jadis had called for back-up and they are now on their way, something that Clarice was suddenly very doubtful of.  
  
"Even if I did have any information on Dr. Lecter other then what's already known to the public, I doubt very much that I would give any of it to you." Clarice kept her voice even, speaking only about half the truth. In reality she actually did have some information on Lecter, but it was information that only she, and no one else knew, and she intended to keep it that way.  
  
An angry sound emitted from Chimera's throat. Turning, he made his way back to the table. "I guess that means that I'll have to force it from you then. Do you really think that I believe that you know nothing more than the public about Lecter? Really Agent Starling, you insult my intelligence in the worse way. That, I think, deserves some punishment, don't you think?"  
  
He approached her again, this time with an even more demented look in his soulless eyes. Clarice stiffened when she saw what he know possessed in his grimy hands, a hammer with a navy-blue handle.  
  
"I guess that I should warn you," he told her while lining up the hammer with a toe on her right foot, "that this is going to hurt like hell."  
  
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Jadis' nails dug into the leather covering of the steering wheel. It took her all the willpower that she possessed to not drive at top speed and run down anyone that dared get in her away. Her now unmasked maroon eyes were focused intently on the road, intent on arriving at their final destination as soon as possible.  
  
Beside her Dr. Lecter was silent. Barely a word was spoken between the father and daughter since Jadis confessed her true heritage. The few words that were exchanged, however, made it clear to both of them that this topic wasn't dead yet.  
  
'Don't think about that now Jadis,' she told herself in her head, 'Clarice comes first, everything else is second.'  
  
Finally deciding to break the heavy silence, Jadis had to scramble to find her voice. "What do you know about Richard Silversted?" she asked him, her eyes still glued to the road.  
  
"Not a great deal, unfortunately," Dr. Lecter responded, his eyes also glued to the road. "He was a classmate of mine in medical school. Very intelligent, but also very competitive. Other than that, I never really knew him, he seemed to be quite a loner, I guess you could say. He finished with second highest marks in class as a matter of fact."  
  
"I assume you were first then?"  
  
"You assume correctly."  
  
Jadis shook her head, confused. "If he's as smart as you say he is, then why the killing spree? And why would he be after people connected to you?"  
  
Dr. Lecter shook his head. "The man always was unpredictable. Unfortunately I don't have the first idea why he is acting the way he is now."  
  
Jadis suddenly had the powerful urge to bash her head against the steering wheel in frustration. "Guess we'll have to find out once we get there then," she muttered more to herself then to the man sitting next to her.  
  
Silence took over once again for the time being. Jadis stole a glance at the dashboard clock. 10:56pm. She took in a shaky breath, hoping that their hunch was right. 'Please let there be at least another hour left for Clarice,' she silently begged in her mind.  
  
Her train of thought was suddenly broken by Dr. Lecter's metallic voice. "What was your mother's name?"  
  
Jadis blinked. 'He wants to talk about this now?!' she thought in disbelief. Sighing, she quickly added, 'Ah, what the hell, I've got nothing to lose,' before speaking.  
  
"Her name was Rebecca Erickson," she answered. "Then she got married and changed it to Rebecca Monroe."  
  
Dr. Lecter nodded. "Yes, I remember her well. Were you born as a Monroe then?"  
  
Jadis swallowed and shook her head. "No, she had it changed shortly after my birth." She hesitated before going on. "If you want to see my birth certificate, it's in the glove compartment in a black leather bag. It has my real name on it."  
  
She listened as her father opened the small compartment and unzipped the bag. She had to fight to keep her eyes focused on the road ahead. There was a couple seconds of uncomfortable silence before the doctor spoke again.  
  
"Jadis Rebecca Lecter," he read out loud. "So she knew all along that you are my offspring."  
  
Jadis nodded. "Yeah, she knew the whole time. But she never told me who my real father was, all she said was that he died before I was born. When I was sixteen I was given that birth certificate and with that I was able to figure out who my father is. But by then you had already made news headlines with your... uhh... hobby, I guess. So I ended up keeping the name Monroe and kept the identity of my real father hidden."  
  
"Does anyone else know about my relation to you now?"  
  
Jadis shook her head. "Not yet, though I assume that it will be only a matter of time before the Bureau finds out. Once that happens I'm out of a job."  
  
She turned the car down a dirt road. She could almost feel the clock ticking on Clarice's time. She suspected that Dr. Lecter could feel it too since he suddenly fell silent.  
  
Jadis shut off the car's headlights, not wanting to take the risk of being seen. Silversted's home was right at the end of this lane. Jadis sped up slightly, desperately hoping that she and Dr. Lecter weren't too late.  
  
Another quick look at the clock confirmed the time as 11:13pm. Jadis clenched her teeth and focused into the darkness beyond the windshield, trying to see into the night. The moonlight illuminated the ground just enough for Jadis to make out where she was going, and she was forever grateful for it.  
  
It felt like forever to reach the end of the road, the final destination. A small cottage and an old dilapidated barn decorated the property. The all too familiar white van showed its presence as they approached. Jadis' blood ran cold as her eyes found the dent where Clarice's head connected.  
  
"We're here," she muttered, her voice emotionless and metallic. For a moment she truly did look like her father's daughter.  
  
Dr. Lecter swiftly got out of the car while Jadis quickly checked her gun. "Hold on Clarice," she whispered, "hold on, we're coming for ya."  
  
Stepping out into the night, two pairs of haunting maroon eyes went dark as a blood-curdling scream pierced into the still night. The flicker of the dark metal of a gun and a flash of the cold, shining steel of a harpy appeared in the hands of the two silhouetted figures that were approaching the source of the sound, the barn.  
  
As they made their approach, Jadis Lecter gripped her gun in one hand and clenched her other hand into a tight fist. With a sinister smile that she inherited from her father, she muttered a small battle cry under her breath.  
  
"Let's rock and roll."  
  
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(A/N: Alrighty then, hope you're enjoying it so far! As always, many thanks for all the great reviews!)  
  
-SP 


	6. War Within a Breath

(A/N: Wow, this is the quickest I've ever managed to get a chapter up! Thanks for the reviews like always! And on we go to chapter 6...)  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters mentioned here, except for the ones I made up myself. So please don't sue, I've got nothin'!  
  
Give Me Darkness, Give Me Light  
  
  
  
Chapter 6: War Within a Breath  
  
  
  
A terrible pain shot up Clarice's leg as the hammer connected with foot. She couldn't hold back the scream that it evoked from her throat. She could feel the warm sticky blood oozing into a slimy puddle in her shoe. She knew that her toe was now shattered.  
  
Behind her, Clarice's fingers lost their grip on the rope holding her. Despite this however, the hold it had on her hands was considerably looser than before. Clarice barely paid any mind to this.  
  
In front of her, Chimera looked quite pleased with himself. The feeling of pleasure was only momentarily however. His face quickly dropped as he became aware of a noise from outside. Clarice barely even heard it; the only sound in her ears at the moment was the rapid beating of her pulse.  
  
She must have been making a sound as well. The next thing she knew Chimera had yelled at her "Shut up!" and bashed her on the side of the head where it had contacted the van's exterior earlier that night, in an attempt to knock her out.  
  
Clarice was only knocked partially unconscious, but it was enough to blur her vision and stop any movements she tried to attempt. She couldn't tell if she was speaking or not for the time being. Her body was now wracked with intense pain.  
  
In front of her, Chimera was nothing more than a dark blur as he ran and picked up something from the table while chucking away the hammer onto the wooden floor.  
  
**********************  
  
As Jadis and Dr. Lecter navigated through the dark old barn, Jadis couldn't help but think about how insane this must look. 'Look at this,' she thought. 'A novice FBI agent and her cannibalistic serial killer father in the dead of night sneaking through a barn looking for a madman to rescue a famous FBI special agent. What a team we make.' Shaking those thoughts from her mind, she continued to follow her father deeper into the darkness.  
  
Following some pained sounds that were easily identified as coming from Clarice, they finally found the door that their target was behind. Beyond it some movement was visible through a crack.  
  
'Here we go,' Jadis thought, gripping her gun. 'With nothing much of a plan and no idea of what to expect, but here we go.'  
  
Looking up, Jadis saw Dr. Lecter step a few steps back from the door. She nodded to him, signaling that she was ready. They had made quick plans as they navigated through the barn, though how well they would work Jadis wasn't sure, but it was better than nothing.  
  
Positioning her gun forward, she summoned up the FBI agent part of her. She got her foot ready to bust down the door. Inwardly she began a countdown while clicking the safety off on her gun.  
  
'One... Two... Three!'  
  
***********************  
  
"FBI! FREEZE!" Jadis busted through the door, gun instantly aimed at the figure in front of her.  
  
He had his back to her and didn't even flinch when Jadis made her presence known. From the corner of her eye she could see another figure shift slightly and make a pained noise.  
  
'Holy shit Clarice!' Jadis thought at the back of her mind. 'What the hell did that bastard do to you?!'  
  
Turning her attention back to the male, Jadis' voice rang out strong into the room. "Alright Silversted, put your hands up and face me. Don't try anything funny or I'll shoot."  
  
Richard Silversted took his time in complying with Jadis' orders. His face had an eerie calm demeanor as he stood there at gunpoint, partially hidden by the shadows. The light from the nearby lamp did little to illuminate the room, but it was good enough for Jadis.  
  
She took a few steps towards him before stopping. Silversted did nothing to regain the distance. Jadis repressed a growl of frustration. The plan that she and Dr. Lecter had devised required Silversted to be in front of the entrance. If he wasn't going to move then Jadis didn't have the first idea of what to do.  
  
Silversted still stood there, leering at her with his cold eyes. "It's good to see you again Agent Monroe," his deep voice rumbled calmly, taunting her. "Sorry that I didn't stick around to introduce myself earlier tonight, I was in a little bit of a rush. Well, allow me to introduce myself now then. I'm Richard Silversted, or more well known as Chimera. Special Agent Jadis Monroe, I assume? It's a pleasure to meet you."  
  
Jadis had to bite her tongue to keep herself from blurting out, 'It's Lecter you asshole, not Monroe.' His whole speech was meant to tease her, irritate her, and drive her over the edge. It would have worked if Jadis hadn't been anticipating it or something like it. Despite this, however, she could still feel her blood boil from his words.  
  
She took a few steps to the side, towards Clarice. To Silversted Jadis instructed, "Stay where I can see you and don't move your hands." As she inched closer to Clarice, he in turn began to inch near the door. Jadis allowed herself an inward grin at this.  
  
'Come on, get a lil' closer...' Jadis silently begged in her head. 'Just a few more inches, just a few more... There, perfect!'  
  
Jadis stopped when she was standing right beside where Clarice was bound. Likewise, Silversted stopped just a little past the door. Jadis allowed that inward grin to finally show through.  
  
Silversted raised an eyebrow. "What are you smiling about?" he asked before something cold and sharp suddenly began to press against his throat.  
  
"That," Jadis answered him while savoring the sight of her father's harpy drawing a few drops of blood from a shocked Silversted. She took the time to check on Clarice while Dr. Lecter did his work.  
  
"So good to see you again Richard," the doctor's voice rang through the room.  
  
Silversted's responded in a weak voice, "Likewise to you, Hannibal."  
  
Jadis focused her attention on Clarice for a moment. She could tell that the older woman was just hanging on to consciousness by a mere thread, her unfocused eyes confirmed this.  
  
"Starling?" Jadis spoke in a soft voice, leaning near her friend. "Starling can you hear me?"  
  
Clarice tried to focus on the blurred figure, but she didn't recognize her until she had heard her voice. "Monroe?" she forced out in a barely audible whisper.  
  
Jadis hoped that Clarice couldn't see her eyes at the moment. It was bad enough that she was here with Dr. Lecter, but had Clarice seen the true color of her eyes right then Jadis was afraid that she would lose all trust in her, or worse.  
  
"Okay, Clarice," Jadis moved out of her line of sight for the moment. "Save your energy for now. We need to get you out of here first." She muttered as she finished the job that Clarice had begun on the rope that bound her hands.  
  
Meanwhile, Dr. Lecter kept his harpy pressed against Silversted's skin as the Good Doctor more or less interrogated him.  
  
"Now then, let's get down to business. I would like to know why you have decided to go on a killing spree with some of my former associates."  
  
Silversted's eyes went hard once again, as did his voice. "I was calling you out Hannibal. I would have thought you have figured that out by now."  
  
"I'll admit, I did suspect that was the reason. Well, now I'm here, what do you want with me?"  
  
"Revenge," Silversted growled. "Revenge for what you did to my life."  
  
Dr. Lecter tilted his head in thought. "I don't recall doing anything to you to make your life that intolerable."  
  
"Bullshit! You took everything from me! I was second to you in everything; I got pushed around for your benefit in med school. All the dignity that I had was lost because of you. I was only considered second best to you and was overlooked in everything, all because of you!"  
  
"I assure you, I didn't do it deliberately Richard. And furthermore, you're in denial. You're blaming your own faults on someone else, namely me. You can't stand to admit that it was your fault alone that you weren't the best so you blame it on others. You are..."  
  
"Shut up! Shut up damn you! It's all your damn fault! You took everything from me! My grades, my job, my life, even my girl!"  
  
That perked Jadis' ears up. 'His girl?!' she thought.  
  
Dr. Lecter was equally interested. "Your girl? And who would that have been Richard?"  
  
Silversted's voice was dripping with anger. "You know damn well who that is Hannibal. Don't tell me you have forgotten all about her. Even though she's long dead, I still remember Rebecca like it was yesterday."  
  
Jadis' heart stopped. She felt the color drain from her face as she listened on.  
  
"Last time I saw her," Silversted continued, "she was in bed, her beautiful face so radiant. Since she wouldn't cooperate that night, I had to be a little forceful with her, especially with that little brat bawling on the floor."  
  
Jadis' head snapped around. Silversted's face held a look of pure pleasure as if from a pleasant memory. Dr. Lecter was looking at Jadis, he knew it too.  
  
"You bastard," Jadis growled, memories now crashing through her mind. Her mother's screams, the pain she suffered, all the blood, his eyes. Those cold, heartless, soulless eyes, the very eyes that stared back at her right now.  
  
Jadis made her way towards Silversted, her maroon eyes flashing a brilliant red. In a split second her right fist made contact with his face. Dr. Lecter stepped back and went to Clarice, knowing that it was his daughter's turn to do some damage.  
  
Silversted stumbled back from the blow as Jadis spoke again. "You motherfucking bastard!" she spat. "You killed my mother."  
  
Silversted regained his posture, realization dawning on his face. "So," he mocked. "You're Rebecca's little brat. I should have recognized you, that scar is hard to miss, as are those eyes."  
  
Jadis made another lunge at him, her rage out of her control. She didn't care about getting out of this alive anymore, now she was out for blood, his blood. She went straight for his throat and knocked him down. Unfortunately, she didn't catch him reaching into his pocket just before she connected with him.  
  
In a flash, Silversted slashed at her face. The scar where he had marked her all those years ago suddenly stung in the worse way. Jadis' hand instinctively went to it and drew back bloody. He had reopened the scar, but now she could take the pain.  
  
Jadis' brief pause was long enough for Silversted to shove her off of him and stand up. As Jadis made a mad scramble for her gun which was lying about two meters away she saw at the corner of her eye Dr. Lecter with Clarice in his arms, silently making his way to the door.  
  
"Hold it!" Silversted roared to everyone. He almost didn't take notice of Dr. Lecter and Clarice, but he caught them just before they exited the door. "Don't any of you dare move, I'm not finished yet."  
  
Jadis stood up as her father moved away from the door. Clarice stirred slightly in his arms, slowly regaining consciousness.  
  
Silversted went on. "I'm glad that I'm prepared for a situation like this. As much as I would enjoy killing all three of you slowly, savoring your pain and watch you beg for mercy, sometimes you have to trade in pleasure for getting the job finished." He pulled something from his pocket, almost like a remote control for a toy car. He turned to Jadis and held up the device to her. "I do believe that you'll recognize this little tool, Agent Monroe. Or should I say, Agent Lecter?"  
  
Jadis clenched her teeth as he drew out her true name. 'So, you know too do ya?" she growled in her mind.  
  
Turning her attention to the device he now held, Jadis blinked. "It's a remote control for a homemade time bomb." About a month ago she led an investigation to shut down various sites on the internet that had instructions on how to make various deadly homemade bombs. It was no secret to the public about who was involved with the investigation, and the story made big news in the media. Jadis repressed a shudder at the thought of some of the reporters that interviewed her.  
  
Silversted nodded. "When I press this button here," he indicated a blue button. "You'll have about five minutes before this whole barn gets blown to pieces."  
  
He shot a piercing glare to Dr. Lecter. "And I'll finally have that sweet revenge that I've been waiting for all these years. I guess it's an added plus that I would have that little bitch of a daughter of yours and your little girlfriend here too Hannibal. The more the merrier as the old saying goes."  
  
Dr. Lecter bore his own eyes straight into Silversted's. "I'm disappointed in you Richard. You're taking the fool's way out of this situation, much akin to taking a chessboard and throwing it to the ground when you know you're going to lose. You're still refusing to admit that your problems were your fault alone. You're still in denial..."  
  
"Shut the fuck up!" Dr. Lecter's words had stung him hard, because in the back of his head, Silversted knew that they were true.  
  
Frustrated, the madman turned his attention back to a pissed off Jadis. "Any last words you little wench?"  
  
Jadis' blood was running ice cold. Her rage was on the verge of taking over yet again. "Go to hell," she growled at her mother's murderer.  
  
Silversted gave her a sadistic grin. "I'll see you when I get there then," he replied before pushing the button.  
  
He addressed the whole trio. "Well then," he said, revoltingly cheerful. "I guess I'll be off now. If any of you even try to escape I'll- Arg!"  
  
Jadis finally snapped. She tackled him back to the ground, determined to do some more damage. "Get Clarice outta here!" she yelled at Dr. Lecter.  
  
The doctor knew that there was no way he was going to be able to get both his daughter and Clarice out of here before time was out. Jadis wasn't going to allow Silversted go away unscathed and Clarice couldn't walk period. Seeing no other choice, he made his way back outside quickly, with a slowly recuperating Clarice in his arms.  
  
An infuriated Jadis was now presently pounding the shit out of Silversted. He had managed to slip away from the crazed female long enough to stand up and find his pocketknife again, but she was on him in a flash yet again. The two started to make their way through the barn, punching and kicking at each other the whole way through, but yet still determined to make it out before the bomb went off.  
  
*Ten...*  
  
Jadis swiftly kicked him in the stomach and made a run for the exit to the outside.  
  
*Nine...*  
  
Silversted grabbed her around the waist and threw her to the ground.  
  
*Eight...*  
  
Jadis got a hold of his leg and sent him crashing down to the ground with her.  
  
*Seven...*  
  
The two rapidly got back on their feet and faced each other.  
  
*Six...*  
  
Jadis punched him in the face.  
  
*Five...*  
  
Silversted flinched and took a few more steps back to the door to freedom.  
  
*Four...*  
  
Jadis got him by the throat and held on tight.  
  
*Three...*  
  
She brought him to the ground and kicked him hard in the stomach.  
  
*Two...*  
  
The woman made a mad dash for the exit.  
  
*One...*  
  
Silversted caught her foot and brought her back down while reaching for his pocketknife.  
  
*Zero.*  
  
From his vantage point outside, Dr. Lecter just briefly caught a glimpse of the two struggling figures at the doorway leading outside before the barn turned into a blazing inferno.  
  
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(A/N: Hmm, didn't turn out the way I hoped it would, but ah well. Phew, that was a hard chapter to write! Anyways, hope you've enjoyed it!)  
  
-SP 


	7. Sleep Now in the Fire

(A/N: As always, many thanks for all the great reviews! Every single one of them are greatly appreciated. Okay, here's the next chapter for your reading pleasure!)  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, except for the ones I've invented myself. Please don't sue!  
  
Give Me Darkness, Give Me Light  
  
  
  
Chapter 7: Sleep Now in the Fire  
  
  
  
Clarice finally became fully aware of her surroundings as an intense heat suddenly came over her body. The feeling was quickly followed by a loud blast.  
  
She looked up at the figure above her, which she quickly identified as Dr. Lecter. All Clarice could remember of the last fifteen minutes or so were just quick flashes and blurred memories, but she remembered enough to know that he had saved her.  
  
"Dr. Lecter?" she managed to speak. He didn't respond right away, he was still looking towards the flaming wreckage before them. She spoke again, "Dr. Lecter, what the hell happened?"  
  
Keeping his eyes on the flames, he quickly addressed Clarice, who was presently seated on the car seat. "Try to get some rest Clarice; you'll need all the strength you can regain."  
  
With that, he went back into the darkness, leaving a very confused Clarice behind to watch.  
  
**********************  
  
Jadis' eyes fluttered painfully open. For a moment she thought that she had died and descended to Hell, but she quickly remembered her current situation and tried to stand up. Her muscles protested greatly to her movements and she could feel small flames lick her body like tiny, ravenous insects. Smoke blurred her vision and made breathing difficult.  
  
Collapsing back onto the ground with an agonizing thud, Jadis found herself coughing up thick sticky blood. She felt paralyzed, weak, and helpless.  
  
She vaguely hoped that her father and Clarice had made it out alive, and likewise hoped that Silversted was now burning to death somewhere in the inferno. As for herself, in her barely conscious mind she didn't really give much hope to surviving and thought of herself as good as dead.  
  
A shadow came over her. She squinted her eyes, trying to see through the stinging smoke. All she could manage was a dark smear.  
  
**************************  
  
Silversted loomed over the bruised and burnt Lecter before him. It may not be the doctor, but it was a Lecter nonetheless, and that was good enough for him.  
  
He had to struggle to keep his balance and to avoid some of the larger flames and burned all around him. From his pocket he fished back out his pocket knife, which was already encrusted with Jadis' blood from earlier when he slashed her on the face for the second time in her life.  
  
Silversted took a few minutes to savor the sight of the suffering Jadis on the ground before him. She made a couple pathetic attempts at standing, only to fall back onto her behind. Silversted allowed himself a sadistic grin at the sight. He wished that he could watch this all night, but knew that all good things had to come to an end. Plus, he was more than a little paranoid with the fact that her father was out there somewhere and may return for her and possibly for Silversted as well.  
  
He bent down to the struggling woman and roughly grabbed a lock of her long dark brown hair and forced her to stay down to the ground. Jadis was now writhing against his grip, trying to get free.  
  
"Alright Special Agent Lecter," Silversted hissed, lining up the blade of his knife to Jadis' chest. "Your daddy isn't here to save you know, but you'll be seeing your mommy again very soon, that I can guarantee. Now hold still you little wench."  
  
*******************************  
  
Jadis' vision cleared almost completely as Silversted spoke to her amidst the crackling and snapping sounds of the burning barn. It made her blood run ice cold.  
  
Silversted tightened his grip on her hair, prodding her closer to the breaking point. She could feel his rancid breath on her face, and in return, she spat in his.  
  
She heard an angry growl escape his throat before he gave her a hard punch in the stomach for it.  
  
"Goodbye Lecter," Silversted taunted, his knife raised. "Be sure to say hi to your mommy for me."  
  
Jadis held his gaze even as the knife began its dive towards her chest. The blade barely even made it down an inch before it was abruptly stopped by a strong hand. Silversted didn't even have time to react before being easily shoved to the ground onto his back.  
  
Jadis now looked up at her father, who still had a firm grip of Silversted's hand. Silversted cried out as Dr. Lecter tightened his grip, twisting his arm in the process. She once again tried to get to her feet, this time successfully.  
  
"Jadis," Dr. Lecter addressed her, his eyes never leaving Silversted. "Get away from the fire and wait for us outside. I'll escort Richard out in a second."  
  
Jadis hesitated for a second, but gave in to her father's request. She knew that she didn't have enough strength back yet to confront Silversted again. She needed a few minutes away from the smoke and flames to recuperate. With one last glance the doctor, Jadis made her way back out into the cold, dark, night air.  
  
******************************  
  
Inside, Dr. Lecter kept a firm grip on Silversted. The knife hadn't fallen from his grip yet. Silversted tried his best to fight against him, but the doctor's superior strength quickly overtook him. Silversted tried to stand, but only managed to get to his knees.  
  
Dr. Lecter allowed the flames to touch the man kneeling before him in pain as he spoke. "Richard," Dr. Lecter spoke calmly him, but a hint of anger or something like it managed to show through in it. "I thought that your problem was with me, not with my daughter or Clarice. But now it seems like you have gained two more enemies in this night, as opposed to just me. Do you really think that Clarice isn't resentful against you for kidnapping and injuring her? Trust me, she won't leave that debt unpaid. As for Jadis, she will never forgive you for what you have done. Know this, she will not rest until you are dead and gone, that I guarantee."  
  
Silversted tried to speak, but was cut off by Dr. Lecter pulling him by his arm out of the fire and into the cold night.  
  
*******************************  
  
Jadis quickly found Clarice in the car, waiting.  
  
"Starling!" Jadis exclaimed while approaching her friend. "Are you okay?"  
  
Clarice nodded. "Don't worry, I think that he just broke a toe and gave a little bump on the head. What the hell are you doing here with Dr. Lecter?!"  
  
Jadis hesitated before answering. "I'll explain it to you later, I promise."  
  
With that, Jadis took the time to take in her surroundings. The still burning barn lit up the area so she could see very well. Beside the barn was a fairly petite house, behind it a small field. On one side was a beach with a tall, wooden boating dock that stretched far out into the sea, on the other side was the lane and driveway. Everything else was forest.  
  
Jadis focused her attention back to the barn just in time to see two figures emerge. One of them dragged the other to the beach, well away from the inferno.  
  
Clarice looked back up at Jadis. She could see the rage burning in her eyes, the maroon color now an intense blood red.  
  
The older agent blinked at her observation. 'Maroon?!' There was only one other person that Clarice knew that had those color eyes. More memories floated back to her. 'Chimera had called Jadis 'Agent Lecter', Dr. Lecter had a relationship with Jadis' mother and Chimera had said something about having Dr. Lecter's daughter there as well... Oh my God!'  
  
Clarice watched as Jadis made her way to the beach, her eyes wide with realization.  
  
'Damn you Jadis,' Clarice thought after her. 'Why didn't you ever tell me?'  
  
*****************************  
  
Jadis practically launched herself at Silversted when she got close enough. Dr. Lecter had backed a few steps away, allowing his daughter to have her share of the murderer.  
  
Both Jadis and Silversted were now on their feet. Lying on the ground in between them was Silversted's knife. They both made a mad dash for it. Jadis had first hold of it, but Silversted managed to wrench it out of her grasp in a mere second. They took a few steps away from each other, looking each other over, waiting for one to make the first move.  
  
**********************************  
  
Clarice's hand was digging underneath the seat, hoping to find something, anything, that would give some relief. What she did manage to find was a cell phone and a gun.  
  
Biting her lip, Clarice considered her options. She could call the police or FBI and apprehend two wanted serial killers, but a part of her didn't want to do that. Her other option was to use the gun. Clarice knew that she should use the phone, but somehow she couldn't bring herself to do that.  
  
She checked the gun for bullets. "One," she muttered, a little annoyed. "Better make this one count then."  
  
She stole a look towards the three individuals on the beach. As she aimed, Clarice had to make a quick decision as to who she was going to, hopefully, shoot. Surprising herself, she found her decision very easy to make.  
  
*********************************  
  
A gunshot rang out into the night, quickly followed by a loud scream. Silversted grasped his bleeding thigh where the bullet entered and Jadis took that moment to strike. Silversted somehow managed to keep his footing, even when Jadis bashed out a fury of punches on him. A quick, mad, blind slash and the woman backed off for the moment, grasping her stomach where the blade made contact.  
  
Silversted tried to take this moment to take a breather, but a terrible stinging feeling in his shoulder prompted him to fight on. Dr. Lecter withdrew his Harpy from Silversted's shoulder and took a firm grasp of his arm again as Silversted raised his own blade to fight back.  
  
Ignoring the pain the wracked her body, Jadis got involved again. She tackled her nemesis, but not enough to bring him down.  
  
The three fighting individuals quickly found themselves on a wooden surface with the sound of the crashing waves of the ocean closer than ever before. None of them took much mind of it.  
  
******************************  
  
The cell phone had long disappeared back onto the floor of the car; Clarice had no use for it she finally decided. Ignoring the intense pain that shot up her leg with every step, Clarice got out of the car and tried to make her way closer to the three thrashing people. Unlike them, she saw the danger that they were slowly approaching.  
  
Limping in the worse way, Clarice barely even made it to the beach when she looked up again. The three were on the edge of the dock right at the end. Just one slip up would throw them all into the deep, dark, icy ocean below.  
  
Clarice tried desperately to pick up the pace, but her injured foot protested greatly and eventually caused her to lose her balance and fall flat onto her face. Growling, she forced herself up again.  
  
Looking back at the dock, Clarice discovered that it was now empty. A loud slash quickly confirmed what she had feared would happen.  
  
************************************  
  
Silversted lost his footing. Falling back, he acted on instinct, determined that if he was to drown or freeze in the ocean depths, so were Jadis and Hannibal Lecter. He grabbed a tight hold on the father and daughter and with all the strength he could summon, he pulled them into the icy water with him.  
  
**************************************  
  
A couple seconds of falling, which seemed to last for hours, then a sharp, cold, wet feeling came over the three as gravity pulled them underwater.  
  
As all three were pulled further and further down, their movements became slower and harder, as did their sense of sight. It didn't help any when they suddenly found themselves tangled amongst a forgotten fishing net, as well as each other.  
  
Jadis kept her grip firm on Silversted's arm the whole time. A piece of the thick rope net wrapped itself around her foot, making it harder to swim. Despite this setback, she managed to get her other foot to dig into his thigh where Clarice had shot him a mere five minutes ago. Silversted's attempts at screaming underwater only made her dig in harder.  
  
Amongst the confusion, Silversted somehow managed to keep a hold of his knife. In a desperate attempt to fight at least one of his assailants off, he swiped madly at the woman, managing to stab her in the shoulder.  
  
Ignoring the stinging pain, Jadis found a bare and unprotected spot on his arm. Thinking quick, she went by her father's example and sunk in her teeth into his flesh and refused to let go. She felt the skin tearing into her mouth as Silversted madly shook his arm, trying to shake the cannibal's daughter off of him.  
  
Her teeth lost grip and Jadis found herself detached totally from him. Her head suddenly felt very light and dizziness started to take hold of her. She could no longer tell which way was up or down either. 'Air,' she vaguely thought, 'I need air...'  
  
The last thing that Jadis remembered before passing out was the hazy sight of Silversted thrashing about, with her father having a strong grip on his throat.  
  
***********************************  
  
Even thought the water made it difficult, Dr. Lecter managed to keep a firm hold on Silversted's throat. It wouldn't be enough to cut off his air supply, but it did cause Silversted to panic even more than he already was.  
  
It was hard to see through in the murky water, but despite it Silversted didn't miss the faint gleam of Dr. Lecter's Harpy. Silversted groped around to find his own blade, only to realize that he had lost hold of it while trying to shake Jadis off of his arm. Silversted thrashed about, now trying to break the older Lecter's hold of his skull, but the doctor's grip was too strong and Silversted couldn't move his head.  
  
In a single movement so quick that Silversted couldn't follow it, Dr. Lecter plunged the Harpy deep into his right eye. Silversted tried to scream again, but all he got out was a pathetic gurgle. Dr. Lecter twisted the Harpy, making Silversted's suffering ten times worse. The blade had gone into his eye socket deep, but not deep enough that it would kill him.  
  
Silversted groped around blindly in agony. His lungs began to burn as well. Dr. Lecter finally withdrew the Harpy, Silversted's right eyeball going with it.  
  
As Dr. Lecter swam away from him, Silversted could have sworn that he felt his eyeball bump into his leg a few times before floating away.  
  
***********************************  
  
Clarice limped along the shoreline towards an emerging figure. Only as she approached did she realize that it was actually two figures, the second lying lifelessly in the other's arms.  
  
Dr. Lecter looked up at her as she approached. "You really shouldn't be walking right now Clarice."  
  
She gave him a slight glare. "Did you honestly think that I would just stay put for you? Besides, someone must have seen the fire 'cause I heard sirens coming this way."  
  
The doctor raised an eyebrow. "And you didn't stay and wait for them to take you back home?"  
  
Clarice sighed, not wanting to think of her reasons for it right now. A slight moan from the third person averted her attention. "How is she?" she asked, indicating the unconscious Jadis.  
  
"She's alive, but her heartbeat is very weak. If she doesn't get treatment of some kind soon, she won't survive the night." Dr. Lecter took a quick look around before speaking again. "You do know how to pick locks, correct?"  
  
Clarice nodded, knowing what he had in mind. "I saw a small cottage a little ways away, but it won't take long to walk to it. I doubt very much that anybody's there and it far enough away from the fire that it won't draw attention."  
  
Dr. Lecter nodded. "That should do for the night. Please lead the way."  
  
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(A/N: Almost done... there's going to be at least one more chapter and an epilogue coming in the next few days, so watch out for that. Hope you've been enjoying it so far!)  
  
-SP 


	8. Calm After the Storm

(A/N: Last chapter at last!! Well, sorta I guess since there is an epilogue coming also. Anyways, enjoy!)  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters except for the ones I created myself. As always, please don't sue!  
  
  
  
Give Me Darkness, Give Me Light  
  
  
  
Chapter 8: Calm After the Storm  
  
Clarice tried her best not to cringe in pain as Dr. Lecter bandaged her foot. Even though he was being very gentle and careful, the foot still throbbed with every touch or movement.  
  
"How bad is it?" she asked him once he had finished.  
  
"Nothing that won't heal in time I assure you. I would advise that you try to stay off of it as much as you can until it has healed."  
  
Clarice nodded as her gaze went to the nearby window. It was still dark outside since it was about 3am. The cottage didn't do much for heat, but Dr. Lecter had found a small portable heater while searching for a first aid kit of some kind. Clarice had also found a small radio while waiting for him and at the moment the local news station was reporting on the breaking news item of the night.  
  
"Earlier tonight a fire broke out in the cottage area," the reporter said through the static. "A car belonging to Special Agent Jadis Monroe of the FBI was found at the scene. Both Agent Monroe and Special Agent Clarice Starling are now reported missing. These two agents have been working on the Chimera killings in this area for about a week now. It is not known as of yet whether or not their disappearances are Chimera related. So far the FBI hasn't released any comment."  
  
Clarice sighed and laid back into the chair she was currently occupying, being careful of her now bandaged head injury. She had long given up on a way to get away from Dr. Lecter, her foot prevented her from moving anywhere for very long. Also, she didn't want to leave Jadis behind.  
  
She watched as Dr. Lecter checked over the still unconscious woman lying on the couch. She was covered with a dark green quilt since the doctor had to take off her clothes to treat her wounds.  
  
"How is she?" Clarice asked him.  
  
"She's lost a lot of blood, but she'll live," he responded as he checked the stitches on her shoulder.  
  
Satisfied, Dr. Lecter went back to his own chair beside Clarice. The lingering silence was starting to get on her nerves in the worst way, especially around this man. Eyes dropping to the floor, Clarice got a glimpse of the scar on his left hand. She suppressed a shudder at the sight, suddenly feeling very guilty.  
  
"I'm sorry," she found herself saying in almost a whisper.  
  
Dr. Lecter looked back up at her. "About what Clarice?" he asked, curious.  
  
She sighed, not sure of what exactly she was going to say, but at the same time knew that she needed to get her confession out. "I'm sorry for what happened that night. I was just trying to do my job and now look at me, I'm the FBI's personal scapegoat. Apparently to Pearsall and Noonan and everyone else at the Bureau 'trying' is a synonym for 'failed'."  
  
She paused for a second to gather her thoughts before going on, just grateful for the opportunity to vent about these things to someone, even if it was Dr. Lecter. At the back of her mind, she was even grateful that he was here with her.  
  
She continued to pour her heart out. "Over the last few weeks I've been thinking about my future in the FBI, only to realize that I don't really have one. So a few days ago I had decided that after the Chimera case was done and over with I would finally resign before I get beaten down even more." Another sigh before looking Dr. Lecter straight in the eye and finishing. "I know that you've always said that I was a warrior Dr. Lecter, but even a warrior can only take so much."  
  
Her gaze dropped back down to the floor, waiting for his response. The short silence that followed made Clarice a little tense, but she tried her best not to let it show.  
  
"Clarice," Dr. Lecter spoke softly, but it still had great strength behind it. He walked over to her and, kneeling before her seated figure, lifted her chin so that she was looking straight into his eyes. Clarice couldn't suppress the shudder that his touch evoked from her. They stayed like this for a few minutes, Dr. Lecter studying her eyes, Clarice mesmerized by his. "What will you do know Clarice?" he finally asked her.  
  
She hesitated, finally breaking her gaze. "To tell the truth Doctor," she said in a quiet voice, "I'm still not one hundred percent sure of what I'm going to do."  
  
"Well, what do you want to do then Clarice?"  
  
Clarice tilted her head slightly in thought. "I just want to relax for a bit I guess," she finally said.  
  
Dr. Lecter raised his eyebrows. "And how do you plan to accomplish that?"  
  
Clarice swallowed. She knew what she wanted, she knew ever since Chesapeake. The only problem was, she refused to admit it. "Maybe going on a trip somewhere far away, or just staying home and lying around and do nothing..." she trailed off, not wanting to admit it, yet wanting to at the same time.  
  
Dr. Lecter made her look at him again. He knew what she wanted as well. 'You're going to make me say it, aren't you?' Clarice fumed silently in her mind.  
  
"A trip Clarice?" the doctor asked. "And where would you be going?"  
  
She replied a little too eagerly than she would have liked. "I was thinking of somewhere in Europe perhaps. You wouldn't happen to have any suggestions would you Dr. Lecter?"  
  
Inwardly half of her was smiling at the truth that was slowly dripping through, while the other half couldn't believe what she was hearing. The FBI part of her, the part called Special Agent Starling, was kicking and screaming at her to take down his ass right now. 'Shut up shut up SHUT UP!' Clarice screamed inwardly at the special agent part of her. She knew that it wouldn't be easy to shut her up, if it was even possible, but in time she convinced herself that she can do it.  
  
Her face did its best not to reflect these conflicting ideals within her at the moment. If Dr. Lecter had seen anything that hinted this, which Clarice was almost sure that he did, he didn't draw attention to it at the moment.  
  
Instead, he did something that would cause most people to run away screaming, he smiled at her. "Suggestions Clarice?" he seemed to be lost in thought for a split second before continuing again. "Would you object to having a tour guide accompanying you on your travels?" he said with a wink.  
  
Later on Clarice would wonder if it was brain damage from the head injury that caused her to tell Dr. Lecter these things, or the thought that he had saved her life for the second time. But for now, she was just glad to have them out, to be able to at least quiet the special agent down a couple notches. She no longer cared about the FBI, she stopped caring a long time ago in fact. She knew what she really wanted to do, she had just been too stubborn to admit it until now.  
  
Looking up at him, the amusement was apparent on her face, a silent confirmation.  
  
A few minutes of silence followed, which Dr. Lecter used to check on Jadis again. Clarice briefly wondered what will become of her friend now and made a mental note to ask her when she woke up.  
  
"Dr. Lecter?" she quietly got his attention again when he was done with Jadis.  
  
"Yes my dear?"  
  
Clarice hesitated for a second. She wanted to ask him this for a few hours now. Though she thought that she already knew the answer, she wanted to hear it straight from him. "Why did you come to help me?"  
  
Dr. Lecter looked upon her for a second before responding. "The same reason why I didn't cut off your hand or killed you that night. You know as well as I do, Clarice, that I would sooner harm myself than to hurt you. Richard Silversted would have killed you, and that is something that I can't allow to happen."  
  
Clarice nodded at his answer. It wasn't exactly what she was looking for, but she was satisfied nonetheless.  
  
***************************  
  
Jadis' eyes fluttered painfully open. She found herself staring up at an unfamiliar ceiling and amongst unfamiliar surroundings. Remembering the events leading up to her passing out, Jadis felt where she was injured, her hand meeting stitches and bandages.  
  
"Hey, you're awake!" a familiar voice greeted her.  
  
Turning her head, Jadis looked to see Clarice seated in a chair near her.  
  
"Hey," she weakly returned the greeting, drowsiness still heavy on her. "How are you doing?"  
  
Clarice shrugged. "Been better, but been worse as well. How about you?"  
  
Jadis grinned slightly. "A little worse for wear I suppose.  
  
The other woman raised a brow. "A little?"  
  
Jadis chuckled. Falling silent, she looked around the rest of the room. "Where's Dr. Lecter?" she asked.  
  
"He's outside, checking the surroundings or something." Clarice sighed and looked at the younger woman. "Why didn't you ever tell me Jadis?"  
  
She swallowed, knowing what Clarice was talking about. "Starling, I wanted to tell you, I really did. I just didn't know how you would take it. Plus I had to keep it secret for as long as I could. I hope you understand."  
  
Jadis let her gaze drop, not wanting to meet her friend's eyes right now. "Clarice, I feel really guilty about it. It wasn't that I didn't trust you, I just didn't want to take any chances. I mean, it's not everyday you find out that an FBI agent is the unknown daughter of a wanted serial killer. Even I used to have problems admitting it." Finally finding the courage, she lifted her now sad, tired, maroon eyes to Clarice. "I'm honestly sorry for what it did, but it was necessary. If anyone at all found out who I was I would have been booted out of the Bureau so fast, and maybe even worse. The only reasons I even joined were to make myself known to my father and to track down my mother's murderer. Now, I've accomplished both. I know who killed my mom, and Dr. Lecter knows that I'm his daughter. What do I have left in the FBI? My days there are already extremely numbered, it'll only be time before they find out who I really am. I can't stay with them anymore Clarice, it's too dangerous."  
  
Her eyes dropped once again. Clarice took the opportunity to speak. "So what are you going to do now?"  
  
Jadis sighed. "I don't know, I honestly don't know." She looked like she was going to have an emotional breakdown.  
  
Clarice bit her lip. "Have you thought about staying with Dr. Lecter? You are his daughter, after all."  
  
Jadis looked sharply at Clarice, surprised by her suggestion. "He only found out about me last night Clarice. Just because we're related doesn't mean he won't at least try to kill me."  
  
"And what kind of a father would I be then Jadis?"  
  
Both Jadis and Clarice jumped at the sound of Dr. Lecter's voice. Neither of them had heard him come in.  
  
Jadis swallowed again. "How much of that conversation did you hear?" she asked him.  
  
"Enough," he replied simply.  
  
Leaning over his daughter, he checked on her injuries again. "Do try to stay still Jadis," he told her. "The medical supplies I managed to find in this cottage are primitive at best, but until I can get my hands on some more proper provisions they will have to do."  
  
Jadis nodded as he continued to check her over. She tried hard to not cringe as he looked over her body underneath the covers and not to flinch when a sting of pain erupted from a particularly bad injury.  
  
Her hand traveled up to the fresh cut on her face. A brief flashback to her young five year old self lying in the hospital bed, her little fingers brushing over her stitched cheek, tears running down from her bloodshot eyes. Taking a sharp inhale of breath, Jadis snapped back to reality, forcing a tear to stay in her eye. She felt the cut again, a scar on scar. A cold, hard feeling suddenly ran through her.  
  
"Is Silversted dead?" she asked, her voice emotionless.  
  
Clarice looked up at Dr. Lecter as well, eager for the news also. He covered Jadis back up with the quilt and then answered, "No."  
  
"What?!" both Jadis and Clarice almost yelled, not believing what they had just heard.  
  
Dr. Lecter nodded. "I'm afraid so. I found a trail in the sand when I went outside. It was most defiantly human, one that has taken a lot of damage. There's no question that it's Richard. Luckily for us he's a fair distance away from here. By the time he even has the energy to walk, we'll be far away from here." He noticed the hard look the two women gave him and quickly added, "I share your desire to see him dead, but neither of you are even nearly healed enough to go after him now. Personally, I'm more concerned with getting all three of us out of the country as soon as possible, before the FBI finds out about us."  
  
Jadis blinked. "We're going with you?" she asked, taken aback. She looked over at Clarice and saw a small hint of a smile playing on her face.  
  
"I've already agreed to come," she told the younger woman.  
  
"Jadis," Dr. Lecter spoke again. "You know as well as I do that you're not safe here. Richard Silversted is after you, the FBI will soon be after you as well. I'm offering you a place to stay and recuperate before facing-off with Richard once again. You don't have to do this Jadis, I won't force you to do anything. However, I gathered that you don't have any plans concerning your future, so I gave you an option." He paused for a second. "Personally, I would enjoy getting to know my daughter more. If I had wanted to kill you, why would I have saved your life last night? Just as I would never harm Clarice, I would never harm you either. As Clarice said, you are my daughter after all, my own flesh and blood."  
  
Jadis sighed, not wanting to meet the doctor's gaze right yet. "Can I have some time to think about this?" she asked quietly.  
  
"Of course," Dr. Lecter replied.  
  
After an hour of debating with herself, Jadis had finally made her decision. Looking up at her father and smiling, she simply asked, "When do we leave?"  
  
**********************************  
  
About five miles down the shore, a bloody, mangled, and exhausted man dragged himself onto a nearby patch of grass, damp with the morning dew. He could feel clumps of sand and the occasional insect finding its way into the hole in his head that used to be occupied by an eye.  
  
There were no houses or people in sight, just endless ocean in front of him and deep, dark forest behind him. The rising sun began to beat down on his torn body, intensifying the pain. As the dark navy blue sky slowly changed to a dim shade of violet, a wave of unbearable rage surged through the man.  
  
"I'll kill them," he rumbled before raising his voice into a terrible yell. "I swear I'll kill them! I'll kill them I'll kill them I'LL KILL THEM!!" He pounded his fists onto the ground, ignoring the pain the action evoked.  
  
On that autumn morning, Richard Silversted swore revenge on Clarice M. Starling, Jadis Rebecca Lecter, and Dr. Hannibal Lecter.  
  
FIN  
  
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(A/N: The epilogue should be up soon. I still haven't decided if I want to do a sequel or just end it all in the epilogue, but at the moment I'm leaning towards sequel. What do you guys think? Anyways, as always, many thanks for all the great reviews!)  
  
-SP 


	9. Epilogue: Never Forget

(A/N: Finally done!! And yes, I've finally decided that there will be a sequel. This epilogue is fairly short, but the sequel, if I end up using all the ideas I'm planning to use, is promising to be fairly long, so be warned ;-) Anyways, enjoy!)  
  
Give Me Darkness, Give Me Light  
  
  
  
Epilogue: Never Forget  
  
*3 months later*  
  
At an airport at Buenos Aires, a young woman named Lilith Anna Mackenzie bought a first class ticket to Cairo, Egypt. With her to see her off were an older man and woman. The man bore a striking resemblance to Lilith.  
  
Setting her down onto the polished floor, Lilith and the couple talked in lowered voices to each other.  
  
"Well," Lilith, who's also known as Jadis Lecter, said, "I guess this is goodbye."  
  
Clarice gave her a playful pat on the shoulder. "Only for now kid," she replied.  
  
After their encounter with Silversted the three left for Buenos Aires almost immediately. During the three month period they were together all three of them had to adjust to their new lifestyles. Now Jadis felt confident enough to go off on her own and, after getting her father's help with establishing a new identity and learning enough Arabic that she was now quite fluent, decided to head off to Cairo.  
  
Dr. Lecter and Clarice, on the other hand, decided to stay in Buenos Aires for the time being. Jadis had watched their relationship grow stronger everyday. She had never seen anybody else so meant to be together nor Clarice so happy. Jadis decided that they deserved to be alone together, seeing as how all three of them had been living under the same roof for the last few months. She wished them nothing but the best.  
  
"You sure that you'll be alright on your own?" Clarice asked her for the hundredth time.  
  
Jadis chuckled. "Trust me, I'll be fine. If anything goes wrong or whatever I promise I'll call."  
  
She had made that promise to them the night before. She thought that it was highly unlikely that she would need to phone them, considering that she was fairly well disguised, but it was good to be prepared she had decided.  
  
Looking up at her father, she spoke, "And I promise that I'll come back from time to time to visit."  
  
"I'll be counting on that," Dr. Lecter responded.  
  
Jadis smiled. It had taken some getting used to, but she and Dr. Lecter had managed to establish a sort of father-daughter relationship between them. Although it's far from normal, their bond had grown very strong. Jadis suspected that it might be due to the fact that the FBI was after them, but she kept such thoughts to herself.  
  
The two locked eyes, Dr. Lecter's blue contacts meeting Jadis' deep violet ones. She faintly wondered how long it would be until she saw him and Clarice again, and hoped that it wouldn't be long.  
  
The two seemed to hesitate for a split second, as if not sure of what to do. Giving in, Jadis found herself wrapping her arms around Dr. Lecter's neck and resting her head on his shoulder. For a minute she wasn't sure if that action was a good idea on her part, but her fears were quickly diminished as her father, in turn, wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close.  
  
"I'll miss you," Jadis quietly said.  
  
"As will I," Dr. Lecter told her in return.  
  
The two stayed like that for a few minutes before breaking the embrace. Jadis turned to Clarice next and gave her a hug as well.  
  
"Stay out of trouble," Jadis said to her.  
  
"You know me," Clarice responded, grinning.  
  
Jadis looked at her. "That's exactly what I'm talking about," she joked.  
  
The two women shared a small chuckle. A few minutes of silence followed until Jadis' flight to Cairo was announced throughout the airport.  
  
Jadis sighed. "Well, that's my flight." Picking up her luggage, she stole one more look towards Clarice and Dr. Lecter. "See you guys around, I guess."  
  
Turning around to leave, she was stopped by Dr. Lecter's voice. "One more thing Lilith," he said, remembering not to use her real name in public.  
  
Facing him once more, a puzzled look was plastered on her face. She could see Clarice grin, as if in anticipation of something. Dr. Lecter's face, on the other hand, remained unreadable even as he handed Jadis a small box.  
  
"Something to remember us by," he told her as she took the box. It felt very light in her hand as she slipped it into her jacket pocket.  
  
"Thanks," Jadis said. "I'll open it on the plane." Picking up her luggage again, she breathed deeply. "I guess this is goodbye then."  
  
Clarice smiled. "Until next time Lilith. You make it sound like we're never going to see each other again."  
  
Jadis grinned at her friend. "You never know," she joked. Looking around, she sighed. "Well, I should leave before I end up missing my flight." Turning around, she gave them one last wave before disappearing into the crowd.  
  
Settling down into her seat, she had almost forgotten about the box Dr. Lecter had given her. Fishing into her pocket, she had to dig deep to find it again. As she pulled it out, Jadis had to resist the urge to shake it and try to guess what was inside.  
  
She held the tiny package in her hand for a few minutes, not sure if she should open it yet or wait a little bit longer. As she contemplated her decision, the temptation to open it became stronger and stronger. She hadn't asked for anything before leaving, and she certainly wasn't expecting a gift.  
  
As the plane rose into the sky, curiosity finally got the best of Jadis. Slowly slipping off the top and carefully unraveling the delicate light purple tissue paper. Her camouflaged eyes went wide with surprise.  
  
Taking her time, Jadis slowly lifted the small, shining, silver necklace from the box, taking the time to admire its beauty. She raised her hand to the small pendant, trying to get a better look at it. She saw that it was a small ancient Egyptian ankh with a tiny green jade stone imbedded in it.  
  
Jadis took a few minutes to take in the sight before finally deciding to slip it around her neck. She almost didn't see the small note that came with the gift until she was fastening the necklace close. Picking up the small piece of paper, she immediately recognized the fine handwriting as her father's.  
  
The note simply read:  
  
To Jadis-  
  
Never forget who you really are.  
  
-Clarice and your father  
  
Jadis found herself choking back a tear. She ran a finger over the jade stone, set into the ancient symbol of life. She knew what was meant by the pendant and the note, she shouldn't be ashamed of who she is. All these years whenever she thought of herself, all she saw was the daughter of the cannibal. She still saw that, but now she also saw so much more, and wasn't ashamed of it or afraid to face it.  
  
'Thank you, Clarice,' she thought while making a mental note to call them to tell them this one-on-one. 'Thank you, Father.' Even though she still hadn't gotten up the courage to call Dr. Lecter that to his face, she was starting to find it more and more comfortable to think of him in that light.  
  
Leaning back into the seat, Jadis found herself gradually falling into a peaceful sleep. Quickly checking to make sure that the make-up that was covering her scar wouldn't rub off, she rested her head against the wall and shut her eyes. Unpleasant thoughts such as Silversted or her mother's death hadn't plagued her dreams in a long time, and for that she was grateful.  
  
'I wonder how long this peace will last for us,' was Jadis Lecter's last thought as she dozed off into a deep, serene slumber.  
  
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(A/N" 'Tis done!!! How you all have enjoyed reading this as much as I have enjoyed writing it! As always, many many thanks for all the great reviews! So, until next time, ta ta for now!)  
  
-SP 


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